Ingredients Makes 6 servings
| 2 lbs | chicken legs, with thighs, skin 1 kg and excess fat removed | 1 kg |
| 3 1/2 cups | water | 875 mL |
| 1 tsp | salt | 5 mL |
| Freshly ground black pepper | ||
| 1 | bay leaf | 1 |
| 2 tbsp | butter | 30 mL |
| 2 cups | quartered mushrooms | 500 mL |
| 1 | onion, chopped | 1 |
| 1 | large clove garlic, finely chopped | 1 |
| 2 tsp | dried fines herbes or dried basil leaves | 10 mL |
| 1/3 cup | all-purpose flour | 75 mL |
| 3 | carrots, peeled and sliced | 3 |
| 2 | stalks celery, chopped | 2 |
| 1/2 cup | whipping (35%) cream or table (18%) cream | 125 mL |
| 1 cup | frozen peas | 250 mL |
| 1/4 cup | chopped fresh parsley | 60 mL |
| CHEDDAR BISCUIT CRUST | ||
| 1 1/3 cups | all purpose flour | 325 mL |
| 2 tsp | baking powder | 10 mL |
| 1/2 tsp | baking soda | 10 mL |
| 1/4 tsp | salt | 1 mL |
| 1/2 cup | shredded Cheddar cheese | 125 mL |
| 1/2 cup | buttermilk | 125 mL |
| 1/4 cup | butter, melted | 60 mL |
Instructions
Prep
- 12-cup (3 L) deep casserole dish
- Preheat oven to 400°F (200°C).
- In a large saucepan, combine chicken, water, salt, pepper and bay leaf. Bring to a boil; reduce heat to medium-low, cover and simmer for 1 hour. Let stand until chicken is cool enough to handle. Pull chicken meat from bones; cut into bite-size pieces. Strain stock and skim off any fat; there should be 21⁄2 cups (625 mL) of stock. Add water, if necessary. Discard bay leaf. Set aside.
- In a large saucepan, melt butter over medium heat; cook mushrooms, onion, garlic and fines herbes, stirring often, for 5 minutes or until softened.
- Blend flour with small amount of stock until smooth; add rest of stock. Stir into mushroom mixture; bring to a boil, stirring, until thickened and smooth.
- Add carrots and celery; cover and simmer over low heat, stirring occasionally, for 15 minutes or until vegetables are just tender.
- Add chicken, cream, peas and parsley; season with additional salt and pepper to taste. Heat through. Spoon hot chicken mixture into casserole dish.
- Preheat oven to 400°F (200°C). Meanwhile, make Cheddar Biscuit Crust (see recipe, below). Roll out on lightly floured board to make a circle large enough to cover casserole. Arrange on top of hot chicken mixture. (If making chicken mixture ahead, cover and refrigerate; microwave on Medium-High (70%), or reheat in saucepan on stovetop, until piping hot before topping with crust.)
- Bake in preheated oven for about 25 to 30 minutes or until crust is golden and filling is bubbly.
- Cheddar Biscuit Crust: In a bowl, combine flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Add cheese. Combine buttermilk and butter; stir into flour mixture to make a soft dough.
I've chosen a biscuit crust to make this a cobbler, but you can cover the savory chicken filling with your favorite pie pastry or frozen puff pastry to make a pot pie. Or you can omit the topping altogether and serve over rice or noodles.
