It's hard to admit this, but, like many teachers of my acquaintance, I don't really do enough extra for others. I think this may be because we are in a GIVING profession. So we feel excused from all the extra stuff that others do. That's not a good excuse. Today, however, I am going to bring dinner to a chemo-weakened acquaintance. This woman is my age and is on her second cancer experience.
I volunteered to make chicken pot pie. My partner told me to just make the creamed chicken and veggie part, because Mary can't chew very well. My partner will bring mashed potatoes and vanilla pudding. This seems like the ultimate comfort food.
There's often a component of selfishness in many good deeds. Mine is that I am keeping half the chicken stuff so I can have some! I love chicken pot pie, but seldom made it. It is a time-consuming business, involving stock, bechamel or veloute, chicken (hopefully, you have left-overs), individually prepped and steamed veggies. What a pain. And, finally, my bete noire, pie crust. And don't tell me it's easy. It's not easy for me. In fact, it's impossible.
Then I read a quick and easy cookbook and discovered liberation. The author said to just make 2 cups of white sauce and throw in a package of frozen mixed vegetables. So that's what I do now. I also poached some chicken breast and cut it up and added to the other stuff.
I also picked up some bisquick at Big Lots for a mere dollar and hope that I can produce an acceptable biscuit for my own dinner. Yes, I know that women in the South can whip up biscuits without a recipe. In 5 minutes. I have seen it done many times. But even after 20 years here, I am still referred to as a Yankee. Yankees can't make biscuits. Everyone knows that.
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5 comments:
The biscuit thing is much clearer than the mere Mason Dixon Line for sure. Drop biscuits are probably the easiest way to make them from scratch. No dough rolling required.
Once when visiting my sister in TX, I was sent to the store for cornmeal (she wanted to make cornbread). I saw there were two types- yellow and white- and asked a woman, "Which one do I buy for cornbread?" She said, "Honey, with that accent there's no way YOU can make cornbread."
That's a good turn you are doing there.
Pot pies are fiddly. I now buy a local bakery's. No pastry= chicken stew, very good too.
@Cubicle--My husband made the biscuits. Easy for me! And I bought Pioneer mix today.
@Duchesse--I do love a good crust, alas. I wish I lived in a ndet city sometimes, with lots of gret resources.
wow my chicken pot pie consists of cooked chicken breast chopped up, can of healthy request cream of chicken, a cup or so of fat free sour cream, can of veg-all, topped with a can of pillsbury reduced fat cresent rolls spread out across the top. my mom makes it the same but no sour cream and nothing low-fat! oh and she does make homemade biscuits which are delicious. no recipe for me to follow so I've never done them.
@Suzy--I had some spinach casserole at a pot luck that was made w/ canned soup. I think that is often the secret ingredient.
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