CHICKEN POT PIE CAULIFLOWER PIE CRUST

Unbelievably Awesome

This is a winner winner chicken dinner!  Gorgeous crispy thyme cauliflower pie crust stuffed with creamy chicken and white wine pot pie filling, every spoonful is a hug of comfort that will have you going back for more.  I am a pastry lover who goes without, I miss my pie crusts and honestly I thought it was all about the pie fillings, but it is not, that crust is important.  This cauliflower crust left me in a tizzy state it was that good!  I won’t deny the first time I made these they were a little fiddly but then I found my groove and now knock them out quick and easy.

There are some quick short cuts to this recipe making it a speedy week night family supper but I like to prep like a pro and roast a chicken the day before, then remove all the meat from the bird ready for the pie filling, make my own chicken stock from the chicken bones left and then make the chicken pot pie filling a day ahead, you can skip this step if you buy a rotisserie chicken and stock on you way home.

Prep time 10 minutes / Cooking time 40 minutes

 

Ingredients 

(makes 1 large or 8 muffin tins)

The Pie Crust

1 large cauliflower 

1 tsp dried thyme

1 cup Parmesan grated

1 beaten egg

Chicken Pie Filling

2 tbsp olive oil

2 tbsp butter

1 onion finely diced

1 carrot finely diced

1 clove garlic chopped

1 rib celery finely diced

1 bay leaf

1 tsp thyme

150ml dry white wine

2 tbsp flour

1 ltr chicken stock

100ml double cream

1 cup peas

1/2 tsp Himalayan sea salt 

1/2 tsp white pepper

1/4 tsp black pepper

1 roasted chicken or 4 raw breasts diced

First make the cauliflower pie crust and whilst that is cooking I assemble the chicken pie filling.

Pre heat your oven to 200 C / 400 F.  To make the crust blitz the cauliflower in a food processor really fine, place in a bowl, add the Parmesan, thyme and beaten egg, mix well to combine.  Take your pie tin or muffin tin and place the cauliflower in to the tin press down then gentle using your finger push up the cauliflower until it reaches the top of the tin, then even out the crust all around the tin so that it is the same thickness all over.  Bake in your pre heated oven for 15-20 minutes until crispy.  Once cooked leave in the oven to cool while your making the pot pie filling.

If you also want to make pie lids make a ball with the cauliflower mix and press out to the size of the pie tin lid, place on a baking tray and bake for 15-20 minutes.

Heat the olive oil and butter medium hot, add the onions, garlic, celery, carrots, bay leaf and thyme, gently soften for around 10 minutes, half way through if your using raw diced chicken add now, if your using cooked or left over chicken add once the sauce is made.  Next make the roux by adding the flour to the mix and stirring in well, add the wine and stir in until smooth, next add half the chicken stock and cream, whisk until smooth, bring to a simmer and assess how thick your sauce is adding more chicken stock until your pot pie gravy is how you like it, add the peas season with salt and pepper and your ready to fill your cauliflower pie crusts.

Remove the pie crust from the oven and for ease you can fill the crust with the chicken filling, pop on the pie lid, brush the lid with egg wash and pop back in the oven for 10 minutes, when serving from the tin the crust will generally break but that does not affect the gorgeous taste.  If making individual pies gently remove the pie crust from the tin and place on your serving plates fill with the chicken pie mix and pop on the lids and serve.