a peek inside the fishbowl

I’ve had this recipe kicking around for years – written longhand on a sheet of paper. So long, in fact, that I decided I needed to get it down in a digital format to avoid catastrophe. And THEN I thought, hey, why not share it here too? There’s no photo, because it doesn’t look pretty and I don’t want to frighten anyone.

This chicken pie is laughably easy to make, and the crust, well, that’s the best part. This is the perfect chicken pot pie recipe for crust-averse folks like myself. There’s no kneading, chilling, rolling, or messing it up. AND, you can put the crust mixture on the bottom of the pie or spread it over top. (Which is my preference by the way.) And although I don’t normally promote recipes that use canned soup, I am making an exception in this case. Another great thing about it is that it helps clear out ye ol’ veggie drawer. Win win!

For the crust, you will need:

1 cup sour cream
1/2 cup butter
1 egg
1 cup flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon dried sage

For the filling you will need:

1/2 each of chopped carrots, mushrooms, celery, red pepper, onion (but really, use what you like!)
2 tablespoons butter
2 cups cubed cooked chicken
1 can condensed cream of chicken soup, undiluted
1/2 cup grated cheddar cheese (optional)

Preheat oven to 400F.

First, the crust. In a mixing bowl, combine the sour cream, butter, and egg. Add the flour, baking powder, salt, and sage. Mix well. It will be alarmingly sticky. Do not panic.

Grab an ungreased 10″ pie plate and choose your own adventure. You can spread the crust mixture evenly over the bottom and up the sides of the pie plate OR wait a bit and spread it over the top once your chicken mixture is ready to go.

For the filling, sautée the veggies in butter over medium heat until they’re straddling the border of crisp/tender. Add the cooked chicken and the soup, mix well. If the mixture is a little thick, thin with a bit of water. Spoon it all into the pie plate.

If you’ve opted to leave the crust for the top, add that now. I use a soup spoon and drop it in big gobs over the surface. Do not worry about the wallpaper paste-like texture, we’re not Martha, and we’re ok with that and IT WILL TASTE JUST FINE.

Sprinkle with cheese, if using, and bake for 30-35 minutes until the top is lightly browned. Let stand for 10 minutes before serving.

That’s it!

I’m not sure if this really qualifies as a salad, but I SHALL CALL IT A SALAD AND A SALAD IT SHALL BE. (That being said, I think this it could also make a very nice side dish too. Maybe served with a pork chop?)

This made an excellent lunch – a veritable cornucopia of flavours –  and it’s officially my new favourite. I ate it faster than you could say: “Boy, this is A VERY GOOD SALAD.”

This recipe is based on this one, which looked good but I thought (a) the dressing could use a little something and (b) I needed to make this into a recipe for one.

Pro tip: roasting the sweet potato in a toaster oven is faster than firing up your regular oven.

For the main part of this dish you will need:

1 smallish sweet potato, cut into chunks
a dash of olive oil
salt (I’m currently addicted to PC black label sea salts. It’s a mix of salt, rosemary, garlic, sage, and pepper, and I use it all the time.)
1/2 Gala apple, diced (My foodie friend Paula Roy told me that they don’t brown as quickly as the others. I had no idea. She’s so smart!)
a handful of kale, washed, torn, stems removed
pecan pieces for sprinkling

For the dressing you will need:

1 tablespoon olive oil
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1 teaspoon mustard powder
1/2 tablespoon maple syrup

1. 1) Toss your chunks of sweet potato with a drizzle of olive oil and your salt of choice. Pop into the toaster oven set at 400F for about 20 minutes, tossing once or twice.
2. 2) While your potato is roasting, make the dressing and deal with your kale. If you’ve never eaten raw kale before, make note: I’m not kidding about the stems. They’re bitter, so get rid of them TOOT SWEET.
3. 3) Put your kale pieces in a large bowl and toss with the dressing. Then, using your hands, massage the dressing into the kale. I bet you’re thinking HOW GROSS. KALE MASSAGE. WELL I NEVER! If you skip this step you’ll be losing out, big time. The pinchy squeezy motion of massaging the kale breaks it down at a cellular level, magically reducing its bitterness and actually changing its flavour. Don’t be shy, give it a really good rubdown, then let it sit in the dressing while the sweet potato finishes cooking.
4. 4) By now your dog will be wondering what’s going on in the kitchen. Promise him or her a little wedge of sweet potato. I bet your dog would give it a thumbs up, if it had thumbs.
5. 5) Once the potato is done (you’ll be able to sink a fork into it), it’s time to assemble your salad. Move the kale over to a plate, top with the sweet potato, apple, and pour the remaining dressing over the whole shebang. Top with pecan bits. Add freshly ground pepper if desired.

That’s it! Let me know if you try this recipe!

I wrote 57 posts about our home reno, but I don’t think I mentioned our basement once. Well, maybe once, but that’s it. I haven’t written about it because it is completely embarrassing. I am ashamed of the state of our basement. ASHAMED. Boxes, junk, stuff, more stuff, new stuff, old stuff. STUFF. Gah. Perhaps if I write about it here I will be more accountable.

When you plan a huge reno like we did, you go in with guns blazing and long lists of Things I Would Like To Have In Our New House. Our list included things like a fireplace, a huge overhaul of the exterior finishing, a main floor laundry etc., but there comes a point where your budget and your dreams don’t exactly mesh. A finished basement was one of the things that was struck off that list. BUT. The basement did get expanded (we decided the addition off the back of our house should have a basement underneath it) and we had them drywall, and build a wall to separate the laundry and work area. So that’s something, right? But it’s a G.D. disaster down there and I honestly haven’t known where to begin.

Oh sure, we’ve been picking away at it here and there – emptying boxes and organizing things – and it’s been incredibly overwhelming. Call it post-reno burnout. But last night Mark and I decided to take a stab at it. So here we are, phase one:

More to come soon. Wish me luck.