Chicken Ham And Fennel Pot Pies Recipes

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 425 degrees, with rack in the middle. In a large saucepan, heat butter over medium. Add carrot, onion, fennel, and fennel seed. Cook until carrot is crisp-tender, 8 to 10 minutes. Add flour; cook, stirring, 1 minute. Gradually add milk and broth, stirring until smooth. Cook, stirring occasionally, until mixture comes to a simmer and thickens, 5 to 8 minutes.
• Remove from heat; stir in chicken, ham, and lemon juice; season with salt and pepper. Divide filling among eight 8-ounce ramekins or ovenproof bowls; set aside.
• On a floured surface, roll out dough to a 15-inch round. With a 3 1/2-inch floured biscuit cutter, cut out eight rounds; place one on each ramekin. Transfer ramekins to a rimmed baking sheet; bake until filling is bubbling and crusts are golden, 20 to 25 minutes. Let cool 5 minutes before serving.
• To store: Prepare through step 3; let cool to room temperature. Cover with plastic wrap, then aluminum foil; store in freezer, up to 3 months.
• To reheat: Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Uncover ramekins; bake on a rimmed baking sheet until bubbling and golden, 30 to 35 minutes. Let cool 5 minutes before serving.

Steps:

• Bring broth to boil in Dutch oven over medium heat. Add fennel; cook 7 minutes. Add chicken and carrot; simmer until fennel, chicken and carrot are tender, about 10 minutes. Pour into strainer set over bowl; reserve broth for another use.
• Melt butter in heavy large saucepan over medium-high heat. Add flour; stir 2 minutes. Gradually add milk and whisk until sauce thickens, about 4 minutes. Add lemon juice, fennel seeds and 1/2 teaspoon salt. Add chicken mixture and ham. Season with salt and pepper. Divide filling among eight 1 1/4-cup soufflé dishes or glass custard cups. Cool completely.
• Roll out pie crust on flour surface to 1/8-inch thickness. Cut out 8 rounds, each measuring 1/2 to 1 inch larger in diameter than soufflé dishes, gathering dough and rerolling as necessary. Cut out leaf decorations from dough scraps, if desired. Lay 1 dough overhang firmly to adhere to sides and top rim of dish. If using, brush bottom side of cutouts with water and place on dough; cut slits in dough for steam to escape. (Can be made 1 day ahead. Cover each with plastic; chill.)
• Preheat oven to 375°F. Place pies on large baking sheet. Brush crusts with glaze. Bake until pies heated through and crusts are golden, about 40 minutes.
• To make pie crust:
• Combine flour and salt in processor and blend. Add butter and shortening and process, using on/off turns, until mixture resembles coarse meal. Add 4 tablespoons water; blend in. Add enough additional water by tablespoonfuls to form moist clumps. Gather dough into ball; flatten into disk. Wrap in plastic and chill until cold, at least 1 hour or up to 1 day. Makes 8 small cups.

Steps:

• Put the chicken in a large pan with the carrots, potatoes, celery, half the thyme and seasoning. Add stock and bring to the boil. Reduce heat, cover and cook gently for 15 minutes. Set a colander over a large bowl, pour in the pan contents and remove thyme. Reserve 600ml/1 pint stock (rest can be frozen).
• Rinse the pan, return to heat and melt the butter. Cook the onions until soft, about 5 minutes. Stir in the flour, then the reserved stock a little at a time, to make a smooth thick sauce. Add the milk and simmer for 2 minutes. Off the heat, stir in the remaining thyme, lemon juice and parsley. Season.
• Mix together the chicken, vegetables and ham in a deep 2.2litre/4 pint ovenproof dish, preferably with a rim or lip. Pour over the sauce and leave to cool slightly. Preheat the oven to 200C/gas 6/fan 180C.
• Roll out the pastry to about 5cm/2in larger than the top of the dish. Cut a 2.5cm/1in strip from all round the pastry. Brush the rim of the dish with egg and press the strip all round. Brush with egg and lift the pastry on to it, pressing the edges to seal thoroughly. Trim off excess, then mark the pastry edge all round with a fork. Make 4 small slits in the centre. Brush with egg and bake for 25-30 minutes until crisp and golden.