This Chicken Pot Pie in a whole wheat crust is creamy and comforting. The whole wheat pastry is delicate and flakey. It almost makes it extra savory and inviting.
Make sure all your ingredients and mixing bowl are cold! Combine flours and salt.
Quickly chop the butter and shortening into cubes. This will make it easier to work into the dry ingredients.
Cut the shortening and butter into the flour using a pastry blender or two knives, working as quickly as possible.
Once you no longer have pieces of butter or shortening any larger than a pea, you are ready to begin adding water. I like to switch to a fork at this stage. Pour ice water over flour / butter mixture 1 tablespoon at a time. After each addition, gently mix with a fork. Repeat until your dough is no longer crumbly when you press it together and will hold together in a ball.
Press into a fat dish, wrap in plastic wrap and put in the refrigerator while you prepare the pot pie. You may roll it out at this stage and keep it cold and covered on a rimless baking sheet if you like.
Prepare the Chicken Pot Pie Filling
Melt 2 tablespoons of butter in a medium pot over medium-low heat. Add onions, carrots, mushrooms, celery and garlic; sauté on low heat until softened and slightly browned. Approximately 15 minutes.
If you are using fresh peas, add them at this point and continue to cook for an additional 5 minutes. If you are using frozen, skip the additional cooking. They will be mush and gross.
Remove veggies to a large bowl and set aside.
Preheat oven to 375°F
Melt the remaining 6 tablespoons of butter in the same pot over medium-low heat, and then add the flour. Stir constantly for about 2 minutes until mixture turns a blond color.
Slowly add the chicken stock in no more than ¼ cup at a time, whisking after each addition.
Whisk in wine, half-and-half, and thyme. Cook, stirring frequently, for 10 minutes until the sauce is thickened. Add the veggie mixture back into the pot along with the chicken and stir to cover with the sauce.
Assemble the pie:
Pour into pan and cover with the pastry. Fold and crimp the edges decoratively.
Whisk 1 egg yolk and 1 tablespoon cold water. Brush over pastry.
Cut at least 4 slits in the pastry. Make sure they are completely through the pastry or your steam will exit out the sides and your filling will runeth over. Trust me, I know. Whatever you do, just do it quickly because the warm filling will melt the butter in the crust and then it won’t be flakey. Sadness!
Set the baking dish on a rimmed baking sheet and bake 30 minutes or until the crust is your version of perfectly brown. The whole-wheat crust definitely took an extra 20 minutes to brown the way my fiancé likes it.
Cool at least 20 minutes before serving. The filling will thicken considerably after 40 minutes. It’s your choice. It tastes just as amazing either way.
Notes
Your Chicken Pot Pie will only be as good as your chicken broth. I use homemade because it’s richer, lower in sodium and much lower in fat. Make my recipe here. It’s easier than you’s think! Whole Wheat Pastry from The Boston Cooking School Cook Book [1914]Chicken Pot Pie filling from A Year of Pies, by Ashley English