How to make chicken pot pie

Chicken pot pie is the perfect dish to use up leftover chicken after cooking an entire bird. It's such a great way to reinvent leftovers, in fact, that many families have the pie dish quite regularly. Although chicken pot pie is indeed delicious, sometimes it needs to be revamped ever so slightly, just to keep things interesting. That's exactly what the recipe that follows does.

It takes out the pie crust completely, making it an ideal dish for those who don't want to mess with crust. In its place phyllo dough is placed just over top of the filling before everything gets baked to golden perfection in the oven. For those that want to switch it up even more, puff pastry can be used. Because it actually puffs (unlike phyllo dough, which doesn't), it's an effective balance for those who want a little heft to their pie.

Servings: 6
Prep Time: 10 mins
Cook Time: 45 mins
Total Time: 55 mins

Ingredients
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
1 onion, small dice
2 large carrots, peeled and cut in a small dice
2 celery stalks, small dice
Salt
3 garlic cloves, minced
3 tablespoons butter, softened
3 tablespoons flour
3 cups chicken stock
3 tablespoons rosemary, finely chopped
3 cups chicken, cooked and cubed into bite-size pieces
1 cup frozen peas
3 sheets phyllo dough
1/2 cup butter, melted

Directions
1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F and grease a 9-inch pie plate.

2. Heat vegetable oil in a large frying pan over medium heat.

Add the onions, carrots and celery pieces. Salt to taste.

3. Cook vegetable mixture for about 8 minutes, until all vegetables have softened slightly.

4 Add garlic to the pan and cook for another 30 seconds.

5. Add softened butter to the pan and allow it to melt. Toss vegetables in the melted butter.

6. Sprinkle flour evenly over vegetables and toss again to coat. Cook flour out for about 2 minutes.

7. Slowly add in chicken stock, stirring as you do to prevent lumps.

8. When all chicken stock has been added, allow the mixture to simmer for about 10 minutes to thicken slightly.

9. Add rosemary, chicken and frozen peas to the vegetable and stock mixture.

10. Pour the mixture into the prepared pie plate.

11. Place one sheet of phyllo dough over the contents in the pie plate. Brush with melted butter.

Fold the phyllo up and over to avoid excessive overhang.

12. Place another sheet of phyllo on top of the first, and brush again with butter, again folding it up and over.

13. Place the last sheet of phyllo on top of the last, giving it a final brush with melted butter. Fold sides up and over if there is overhang.

14. Place the pie plate onto a baking sheet and put in the preheated oven. Bake for 25 to 30 minutes, until the phyllo is golden brown.

Plate and serve!