We are always looking for and creating fun and delicious recipes that are dairy-free so that we can all enjoy them. {For those of you just joining, my almost 3 yr old son has life-threatening dairy, egg, and peanut allergies.}
I love easy dishes that can be made from pantry staples. I developed this recipe the other day, and my family couldn't get enough of it! The kids - who are very much separatists {meaning they don't like the food on their plate to touch each other} - ate everything on their plate!
{Please ignore the gross counters under my plate. They are clean, just old and stained. If I were a little smarter I would have plated on a solid colored plate instead... replacing counters is on my long-term to do list!}
Essentially these are individual chicken pot pie pockets... hence the name, chicken pot pockets... after all, it's not really a pie is it?!?!
Here's what you need:
Ingredients
• 1 package refrigerate pie crust
• various veggies (corn, peas, celery, carrots, potatoes, onion, bell pepper, etc.)
• 1 large can of canned chicken
• olive oil
• fork, knife, pizza cutter (optional), spoon
• baking stone or sheet pan
Here's how to make them:
Start by washing and drying your veggies. Then dice the carrots, celery, and onion. Place a very small amount of olive oil in the bottom of your saute pan so your veggies don't stick. Then add the carrots, celery and onion to your pan. Cook until the onion turns translucent.
Once the onions are just about done, I add my baby butter potatoes. They are literally the size of about a gumball... and they are so delicious. I cut them in quarters to be about the same size as the other veggies. Since they are small they don't need to cook long and they will continue to cook in the oven.
I love to saute my vegges first because it adds to the overall flavor, and I brown them up a little before they go into the pocket.
Warm up your
cream of chicken soup, season it with your choice of seasonings, and add the saute-ed veggies. (You can see my seasoning in the
cream of chicken soup already.) I keep my pot on low heat while I add all of my additional ingredients.
Next I add my frozen peas and corn. We always have these on hand. I don't add them until now because if you try and saute frozen peas and corn they turn kind of gummy.
Stir everything together and grab your canned chicken. Be sure to drain the water out of the can.
Once drained, add the chicken to your pot and stir together.
If you choose to add bell peppers, I always add them last because I don't really like my peppers soggy. Now it's time to make the pockets.
You will want to follow the directions on your pie crust box as to how long it needs to thaw before you can work with it. Usually it needs to sit for about 10-15 minutes before you can unroll it.
If you have dairy or egg allergies, be sure to read the labels in the store carefully so that you purchase the correct pie crust. I have found that both the Pillsbury and the Safeway brands of refrigerated pie crust are dairy and egg free.
1. Unroll your pie crust dough and use a pizza cutter to cut it into quarters.
2. Separate one quarter to work with. Spoon a small amount of the pot pie filling onto one side of your quarter piece.
3. Fold over your quarter piece and press the edges together to form your pocket.
4. Smooth out the edges to be sure that they are sealed.
Once your pocket is sealed, gently transfer it to your baking pan. Then use the teeth of a fork to crimp the edges all the way around - it makes it look more like traditional pie while really sealing it all together.
Then use your knife to cut a few slits on the top of your pocket. This lets the steam escape so that your pocket doesn' explode... that would be BAD!
Complete the other 7 pockets (4 from each of the pie crust rolls).
Bake in a 350ºF oven until the edges start to turn brown.
Let them cool for 2-3 minutes and serve! Yummy!
The flaky pie crust is super delicious and the inside is nice and moist.. so full of veggies and healthy goodness! Enjoy!
Eat them now, or cool them off, wrap them up, freeze then and enjoy them later!
{If you don't have to worry about eating dairy-free, you can absolutely substitute a store bought can of cream of chicken soup. Add a little milk to it as your warm it up in your sauce pan. Then add seasonings if you like it all flavored up!}