Chicken Pot Pie Soup

Recently I had a delicious chicken pot pie at a restaurant. But chicken pot pie isn’t my favorite thing to bake, so I made it my own way: soup version…comfort food at its best!

Ingredients:
4 chicken thighs, cooked and cubed
1 onion, diced
3 cloves garlic, diced
4 carrots, sliced thin
2 celery stalks, sliced thin
1 large potato, diced
1 carton mushrooms, roughly chopped
8 cups chicken stock
4 T butter
4 T flour
4 cups milk
1/2 cup potato flakes
salt and pepper, to taste

Pie crust:
1 1/2 cups flour
1/2 cup shortening
1/4 cup cold butter
1/2 tsp salt
1 egg
2 tsp vinegar
1/4 cup cold water

Directions:
Heat the oven to 350. Prepare pie crust by combining flour, shortening, and cold butter to a large bowl. Mix with a pastry cutter until the butter is in smaller pieces. Use your hands to finish mixing until it is roughly combined. Add in the salt, egg, vinegar, and cold water. Combined by hand or with a mixer until it is a smooth dough. Roll into a large rectangle. Using a cup or biscuit cutter, cut circles and place on a parchment-lined baking sheet. Bake for 8–10 minutes, or until light brown.

While the pie crust is baking, heat oil and saute garlic and onion for 5 minutes on medium heat. Add carrots, celery, and potatoes and cook for 4 minutes. Add mushrooms and stock.

Bring the vegetables to a boil and simmer for 20 minutes or until they are tender. Meanwhile, melt butter in medium sauce pan. Whisk in the flour and cook for 3 minutes. Whisk in milk and simmer for 8 minutes. Add chicken to vegetable pot. Add milk as well. Let cook for 5 minutes. Add potato flakes and cook for an additional 5 minutes. Add salt and pepper to taste. Put a pie crust round on the bottom of the bowl. Add soup, then top with another pie crust round.