Mini Chicken Pot Pies

I'm continuing my week long tribute to pie for Pi Day. Have you checked out my other posts this week? I can't believe I'm already halfway through the week! So far, I've shared my favorite apple pies and some nerdy Pi Day snacks!

Today, I'm taking a break from the sweet, and focusing on the savory side of pies. One of my favorite comfort food meals is chicken pot pie. I love the creamy filling stuffed with veggies and chicken, and the flaky, delicious crust on top. My biggest gripe about chicken pot pie, though? I hate peas.

Now I don't consider myself an extremely picky eater, but there are a few things I really don't like and peas are one of them. The funny thing is I used to eat them when I was younger. In fact, I was the only one in my family that would eat the veggie. Then one Christmas when I was little, my grandma burned them and insisted they were fine to eat and I should enjoy them. That smell...that taste...it was forever engrained in my brain. Now as silly as it sounds, I haven't been able to enjoy them since. It's been a couple decades (yikes!) since that happened, but I've tried them again and again and have the same disdain. So, my chicken pot pie enjoyment is usually interrupted by picking out all the green veggies trying to hide in that delicious, creamy sauce.

It dawned on me recently, though, that I should just make my own chicken pot pie with ingredients I would enjoy. So, that's what I did. I replaced those pesky green veggies with corn and I LOVED it! Now I'm not the first person to add corn to a chicken pot pie, but it was the first time I'd had it in one. I also elevated the chicken broth by adding a packet of ramen chicken seasoning. I'd read about doing this in chicken noodle soup, but decided to see how it would work in chicken pot pie. I've never made one without the seasoning to compare it to, but I think it helped add to the delicious chicken flavor. I also added plenty of shredded chicken, carrots, onions, a little bit of heavy cream, and plenty of pepper!

My final twist on the classic dish was to make mini versions that I could ration out and take for lunch each day. I used ramekins to bake them in, it worked out well. For the pie crust, I just used refrigerated pie crust - it made it quick and easy, but still tasty!

Here's my delicious chicken pot pie recipe.

Mini Chicken Pot Pies ingredients (yield 6 mini pies):

• 4 tbs butter
• 1/2 cup onion, finely chopped
• 1/2 cup carrots, finely chopped
• 1/2 cup corn
• 2 cups chicken, shredded (you could also use turkey)
• 1/4 cup flour
• 3 cups chicken broth
• 1 ramen noodle chicken seasoning packet
• 1/4 cup heavy cream
• Salt and pepper, to taste
• 2 premade pie crusts

Mini Chicken Pot Pies instructions:

• Preheat oven to 375F
• Set out refrigerated pie crusts to let them get to temperature
• Melt 4 tbs butter on medium-high heat in a pot
• Cook onions and carrots until onions are translucent (around 3 mins)
• Add chicken and then sprinkle on flour and ramen sauce packet

• Stir and cook for 1 min
• Add chicken broth, let it cook and thicken for 2-3 mins

• Add a small dash of salt, and plenty of pepper (I like a lot of pepper in the pies)
• Pour in heavy cream; let bubble and thicken for 3 mins
• Add a tad more flour if it is too soupy, or a tad of chicken broth if it is too thick
• Remove from heat
• Cut circles from pie crust using a cutter or a knife, cutting it larger than the ramekin to leave around 1/2 in overhang

• Fill ramekins to 1/2 in below the top of the dish
• Cover dishes with pie crusts and pinch/crimp to seal up

• Add 4 slits to the top of each pie
• Brush on a small amount of melted butter to the tops of the crusts
• Bake 30-35 mins, until crust is golden brown

Here's the recipe card, feel free to print, share, or save!