Baking Coach: Chicken Pot Pie

Here is what you need:

• 2 2/3 level cups all-purpose flour 
• 1 tablespoon sugar 
• 1 level teaspoon salt 
• ½ cup all-vegetable shortening, cold 
• ½ cup butter – unsalted, cold, and cut into 1-inch pieces 
• 7- 8 tablespoons cold water 
• 10 ½ ounce can cream of chicken soup 
• 1 ½ cup frozen mixed veggies 
• 1 ½ cup chopped cooked poultry Chicken or Turkey 
• 1 egg (optional) 

Here is how you do it:

Mix flour, sugar, and salt in a medium bowl. Cut in shortening and butter using your fingertips until all flour is blended in to form pea-sized chunks. Sprinkle with water starting with the 7 tablespoons. Keep using your fingertips to blend until the dough forms a ball. The dough should come together quickly. If it doesn’t add in the additional tablespoon of water. Divide dough in half, making a double crust. Press between hands to form 2 disks; wrap in plastic wrap, and chill for ½ hour in the fridge, before rolling. While dough is chilling use the same bowl you mixed the dough in for the filling. Add to the bowl, soup, veggies and poultry, mix well, set aside. 

Flour dough lightly. Roll into circle between sheets of waxed or parchment paper on a flat surface. Peel off top sheet. Flip into pie plate. Remove other sheet and press pastry to fit. Transfer bottom crust to pie plate. Using a fork, create 5 sets of vent holes into the dough. Pour in filling. Repeat the same process for dough’s top crust. Remove top sheet from top crust. Lift top crust onto filled pie. Remove another sheet. Trim dough to the edge of pie plate. Press top edge to bottom crust with a fork. Pierce top crust with fork 4 or 5 times and cut a hole in the center top crust to allow steam to escape. For a shiny crust, brush with a scrambled egg and 1 teaspoon of water just before baking. 

Bake assembled pie on a cookie sheet in a 375-degree oven for about 40 – 50 minutes, or until golden brown.