Chicken Pot Pie

The weather is freezing! We’re having our first truly cold week. I had to break down and turn the heat on one day last week, but now it’s pretty much on permanently (well, until Friday–it’s supposed to be back up to 60 degrees).

Last night, all I wanted to do was get home and make warm comfort food. I decided during the work day that I was in the mood for chicken pot pie. There were a couple of more “homemade” recipes with fresh vegetables and fancier ingredients that sounded good, and perhaps I will try them sometime.

But for tonight, I went with the familiar… the chicken pot pie my mom used to make. Which, incidentally, is also the easiest and fastest to deal with. Perfect for a weeknight.

I knew my mom always made chicken pot pie with Bisquick, but I hadn’t ever made it before and didn’t know the recipe. I went searching on the Betty Crocker website and found quite a few variations. Since we always try to make healthy substitutions whenever possible, I decided to go with the reduced-fat version. I picked up a box of Bisquick Heart Smart at the grocery store.

I cut up the chicken breasts and boiled them in chicken broth for about 20 minutes. I let them cool for a little bit, then shredded them before moving forward with the recipe.

This meal was so easy. And pretty tasty, too. We’ll be making this again for sure.

Reduced-Fat Chicken Pot Pie
(Source: www.bettycrocker.com)

Ingredients:
– 1 cup shredded, cooked chicken breasts (boneless, skinless)
– 1 bag (12-16 oz.) frozen mixed vegetables, thawed
– 1 can (10 3/4 oz.) condensed 98% fat-free cream of chicken soup (I used Campbell’s Healthy Request, which is also reduced sodium–we never notice the difference)
– 1 cup fat-free (skim) milk
– 1 cup Bisquick Heart Smart mix
– 1 egg
– Oregano and thyme (I added these dried herbs for more flavor)

Directions:
1. Heat oven to 400°F. In ungreased 2-quart casserole dish, mix chicken, vegetables, soup and 1/2 cup of the milk. Microwave on high for 4 minutes; stir.

2. In small bowl, stir Bisquick mix, the other 1/2 cup milk and the egg with fork until blended. Pour over chicken and vegetable mixture.

3. Bake uncovered about 30 minutes or until golden brown.
High Altitude Adjustment (3500-6500 ft): In step 1, increase milk to 2/3 cup. Bake about 35 minutes.

The recipe says you will get 6 servings out of this. We only got four (we each ate a quarter of it).

With six servings, the nutrition information is (per serving): Calories 220 (Calories from Fat 50); Total Fat 6g (Saturated Fat 1 1/2g, Trans Fat 0g); Cholesterol 60mg; Sodium 650mg; Total Carbohydrate 28g (Dietary Fiber 2g, Sugars 7g); Protein 14g

With four servings, I recalculated the calories and fat (per serving): Calories 330, Total Fat 9g. Even with eating 1/4 of the pie, this is definitely a healthy meal! Pair it with a salad and you are doing pretty well for yourself.