I love fresh herbs. Chives, rosemary, sage, thyme, parsley, tarragon, basil, oregano can easily take a boring biscuit recipe and make it magical. I must admit, though, I struggle to keep my fresh herbs alive. Every apartment, townhouse, or home I have inhabited has some permutation of fresh herbs adorning the kitchen window, patio, or garden. When I lived in St. Louis, I had a large pot of herbs on an outdoor patio.
These lasted for several months until a curious orange cat decided that the pot was a glamorous litter box. For a cat, this magical pot of compost and dirt adorned with fragrant plants must be equivalent to the warm seat of a Toto. Aside from cat-inflicted herb demise, I consistently over or under water the potted herbs, leaving a collection of empty, white, decorative pots to adorn my windowsill.
Despite my inevitable graveyard of gnarly herb twigs littering the patio, every spring, I take great pleasure in taking my son to the local yard and garden store to pick out fresh herbs and potting soil. We arrive home with an array of fresh herbs and a few celestial-appearing flowers, picked out by my son. We put on our gardening gloves and dig out the garden tools from the garage before planting the herbs around our compost bin.
Placing the fresh herbs in the ground yields a sense of accomplishment. Maybe not the same sense of accomplishment Vivaldi achieved after finishing the four seasons, but having freshly planted herbs never fails to leave a smile on my face.
As the rainy spring days fade away and the summer heat envelops the South, my herbs struggle to find enough shade and water to prevent wilting. A small snip here and there for a sauce, biscuit, or soup leaves my herbs looking like a four-year-old accidentally found a pair of kitchen shears. This chicken soup is packed with herbs from my garden and showcases some of my favorite herbs in the garden. While not as delicious as my mother’s chicken pot pie, this one will do.
Chicken Pot Pie
- Total Time: 1 hour 50 minutes
- Yield: 20 servings 1x
Description
This chicken soup is packed with herbs from my garden and showcases some of my favorite herbs in the garden.
Ingredients
- 1 stick (8 Tbs) unsalted butter
- 1 1/2 cup leeks, diced
- 1 1/2 cup shallots, diced
- 2 cup carrots, diced
- 1 cup celery, diced
- 1 Tbs garlic, chopped
- 1/2 cup white wine
- 1/4 cup vermouth or sherry
- 1/2 cup flour
- 8 cups chicken stock
- 2 cups potatoes, diced
- 8 ounces baby bella mushrooms, chopped
- 8 ounces English peas, fresh or frozen
- 2 cups chicken, shredded
- 1/4 cup heavy cream
- 1 1/2 Tbs fresh chives, chopped
- 2 tsp fresh thyme, chopped
- 1 Tbs fresh parsley, chopped
- 1 tsp pepper
- Salt, to taste
Biscuits
- 3 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 1/2 tsp baking soda
- 3 tsp baking powder
- 1 tsp salt
- 2 sticks unsalted butter, cut in to 1 Tbs pieces
- 2 tsp fresh chives, chopped
- 1 tsp fresh thyme, chopped
- 1 Tbs fresh parsley, chopped
- 2 tsp fresh sage, chopped
- 1/2 tsp ground pepper
- 1 1/2 cups buttermilk
- 3 Tbs heavy cream (plus 1–2 additional Tbs as needed)
- 1 egg
- 3 Tbs heavy cream
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.
- First make the soup: In a large pot or Dutch oven, melt the butter over medium heat. Add the shallots and leeks and cook for 4-5 minutes, stirring occasionally to prevent them from burning. Add the carrots and celery. Stir to combine and cook an additional 4-5 minutes. Add the garlic and cook for an additional 1-2 minutes. Add the wine and vermouth or sherry. Stir and cook for 3-4 minutes, to cook off some of the alcohol.
- Add the flour and stir to combine. The mixture will become very thick and gooey. Continuously stir for 2-3 minutes. Slowly, add the chicken stock and stir continuously to combine.
- Then add the potatoes, mushrooms, English peas, and chicken. Simmer for 15 minutes. Add heavy cream and simmer additional 5 minutes. Add the chives, thyme, parsley, salt, and pepper.
- While the soup simmers, make the biscuits: In a large bowl, combine the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Stir to combine. Add in the butter pieces and mix by hand or with a pastry blender until the butter has been well incorporated into the dough. You can also use a Cuisinart mixer and pulse the butter into the flour mixture to create a coarse mix. The dough will not stick together at this point. Mix in the thyme, chives, parsley, sage, and ground pepper. Add the buttermilk and heavy cream and mix until just combined and the dough is able to form a ball. Move the dough onto a floured surface and knead the dough 2-3 times to form the ball. With a floured rolling pin, roll out the dough. Use a biscuit cutter or round cookie cutter to cut out the biscuits. Do not twist the cutter when pressing down or pulling up into the dough. Place the biscuits on a parchment lined or Silpat lined baking sheet.
- Finally, bake the pot pie:Top the soup with the biscuits. In a small bowl, whisk together the egg and heavy cream. Brush on top of the biscuits. Bake uncovered for 30-40 minutes, until biscuits are fully cooked.
Notes
Do not place a lid on the pot pie while it cooks in the oven.
- Prep Time: 30 minutes
- Cook Time: 1 hour 20 minutes
- Category: Dinner
- Cuisine: American
Keywords: Pot Pie, Dinner, Comfort Foods
