I can’t imagine Autumn without enjoying a healthy portion(s) of my absolute favorite …
Chicken Mushroom and Leek Cobbler
It’s more of a Chicken Pot Pie remake to be honest. Although I don’t mind carrots … cooked … they really aren’t my favorite food. So I usually think of ways around them, like not using them at all if I can get away without them. This recipe is a classic example of my tweaking to death a recipe until it was nothing like what mamma use to make. *Disclaimer – That said, my mom DID indeed make delicious food, but she usually stuck to the recipe without altering it, not a bad thing…WE LOVED HER FOOD.*
I on the other hand, am always thinking of a multitude of ways to make say … potatoes for example. In fact, every time I make a basic pasta sauce I change something and it never taste the same way twice…it’s tasty, but my little wheels are forever reinventing my old stand bys and I have to force myself to stick with what I did the last time I made it … because my kids have caught on and apparently need some stability in the kitchen, lol.
I decided to make this a cobbler rather than use a traditional pastry top…I completely left out the peas and carrots…pretty much so changed the whole shebang. I added instead, my personal favorites – leeks and mushrooms. Leeks are the gorgeous and have a butter like taste which is complemented by the woody mushrooms. Thyme is my herb of choice and for the cobbler, I sneaked in some cheddar cheese!
The cobbler  – YUM! In fact, you can make the cobbler portion of the recipe as drop biscuits and serve them with most any hearty meal. You can also change out the Cheddar for any cheese, such as Gruyere or Parmesan and indulge. They are extremely versatile and have a rustic, down home yum to them.
As you may have noticed, mine kind of cooked over and out of the dish, this is normal and to prevent labor intensive oven cleaning later, I simply had set my casserole dish on a baking tray during the baking time. So just in case yours might decide to go AWOL … remember the baking tray!
My BIG tip that I saw on a show I can’t even remember now: FREEZE the butter for several hours or overnight, not just fridge it. AND FREEZE that box grater too. I do this for all my pastry dough now and it works brilliantly every time.
Chicken Mushroom and Leek Cobbler
Ingredients
For the Filling:
- 2 Tbls Olive Oil
- 3 Chicken Breast boneless, skinless and cut into 1 inch cubes
- 16 oz Mushrooms sliced
- 2 Garlic cloves minced
- 1 large or 2 small Leeks cleaned and sliced @ 1/4 inch thick
- 6 Tbls All Purpose Flour
- 2 Tbls Mustard Powder or stone ground mustard
- ½ tsp Salt
- ½ tsp Pepper
- 1 tsp Thyme dried
- 1 14.5 oz can Chicken Broth
- 2 Tbls Whipping Cream or substitute Greek Yogurt or Creme Fraiche
- 2 tsp Balsamic Vinegar
- ½ cup dry White Wine or water
Cobbler:
- 2 ½ cups Self Rising Flour
- ¼ tsp Paprika
- ¼ tsp Salt
- 1 tsp Baking Powder
- ¼ tsp Pepper
- ½ cup unsalted Butter frozen and grated
- ½ cup Cheddar Cheese grated
- 1 ¼ cup Buttermilk
Instructions
- *Several hours before, such as the night before, put your butter and box grater in the freezer*
For the Filling:
- In large saute pan or skillet, heat the Olive Oil over medium high heat.
- Add Chicken and cook until starting to turn golden 8 - 10 min.
- Toss in Mushrooms and minced Garlic and cook for a further 3 - 5 min. Stirring occasionally.
- Now add the Leeks and give it a stir, Turn heat down to just under medium and cover for an additional 5 min.
- Slowly sprinkle over the All Purpose Flour (do NOT dump it all in at once) and stir as you add . Stir in well.
- Now you can add the Mustard, Thyme, Salt and Pepper and give it a quick stir before continuing to add in the Chicken Broth, Balsamic Vinegar and the White Wine (or Water). Mix well and simmer for a couple of minutes.
- Take off the heat and now add in the Whipping Cream. Taste and adjust taste if needed. Give it a quick stir, transfer to oven-proof casserole dish (6 cup dish) and set aside.
- Preheat oven to 400F.
For the Cobbler:
- With frozen butter and frozen box grater, grate your butter quickly and add to a large bowl with the Flour and gently toss grated butter around in flour to coat.
- Add Paprika and Salt.
- Now with same grater, grate cheese and add to bowl, tossing to coat.
- Pour in Buttermilk. With fork or pastry blender gently mix and start to press buttermilk throughout until a shaggy dough starts to form, don't worry about cheese and butter being blended completely in.
Finishing Up:
- With the Chicken mixture already in a 6 cup casserole dish, take a heaping Tablespoon of the cobbler batter and "drop" along the edge of dish to form mounds.
- Bake in the middle of a pre-heated 400F oven for 25 - 30 min or until tops of Cobbler lightly browns.
- Carefully remove from oven and cool for 5 - 10 min. Serve.
***Note: Mixture can "boil" over when in the oven, so placing casserole dish a baking tray will save you from having to clean the bottom of the oven later.
Fresh bites, cozy vibes 😎
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