Homemade Turkey Pot Pie

The only problem with this turkey pot pie is that you will want it for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. It's filling, comforting, and the perfect dish for leftover Thanksgiving turkey.

I love pot pies. Along with meatloaf, mashed potatoes, and macaroni and cheese, they the ultimate comfort food.

You don't have to wait until Thanksgiving to make this pot pie. You can buy a turkey breast or turkey legs and roast them for the filling. If you don't like turkey (and why not?), this recipe also works for chicken.

I found and adapted this recipe from the Thanksgiving leftover section of  The Pioneer Woman Cooks: A Year of Holidays: 140 Step-by-Step Recipes for Simple, Scrumptious Celebrations.

This has got to be one of the most illustrated step-by-step cookbooks ever. If you like illustrations in your cookbooks, this one's for you. I definitely do, and I also love pretty food photos.

I was originally looking for a turkey soup recipe, but this pot pie looked so delicious that I ended up buying a turkey breast just to make this dish. The original recipe says that it's 12 servings, but we managed to stretch it to four. It was that good. In addition, you can make the filling a day before assembling the pie. In fact, I roasted the turkey breast on day one, made the filling on day two, and assembled and baked the final dish on day three.

How's that for a make ahead dish?

Homemade Turkey Pot Pie

Ingredients

4 T butter

3/4 C finely diced onions

3/4 C finely diced carrots

3/4 C finely diced celery

2 C chopped or shredded turkey meat

1/4 C flour

3 C low sodium chicken broth

1/4 tsp turmeric

salt to taste

1 tsp freshly ground pepper

1 dash hot sauce (optional)

1 T chopped fresh thyme

1/4 C heavy cream

1 recipe pie crust of your choice or store bought pie crust

One large egg + 1  tsp water, whisked to use as an egg wash

Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F
2. In a large Dutch oven, melt the butter over medium heat. Add the onions, carrots, and celery. 
3. Saute the ingredients for about 3 minutes, until the onions are soft. 
4. Add the turkey, add the flour, stir, and then continue to cook for another 2 minutes. 
5. Add the chicken broth, turmeric, salt, pepper, hot sauce, thyme, and cream.
6. Stir and bring to a simmer. Let cook for about 3 minutes, until thickened. 
7. Pour the filling into a deep dish 2 quart pie dish or casserole dish. 
8. Brush the edges of the pie dish with the egg wash and cover the filling with a pie crust round. Arrange the pie crust so that it will stick to the edges of the pie dish.
9. Slit the pie crust with a sharp knife and brush with the rest of the egg wash. 
10. Place the pie pan on a baking sheet and bake for about 30 minutes, until the crust is a deep golden brown. 
11. Serve in bowls with shards of the crust on top.