day eighty-two

despite the balmy seattle weather i had a pretty wintery, listy weekend: i went ice skating (#27) and learned how to make chicken pot pie (#59). mom would be proud, if she was at all domestic. although i suppose she still could be - maybe even moreso because i'm forging new culinary territory as far as our family's matriarchs are concerned. yep, forging new "mom" territory with chicken pot pie. i said it was bad... but let's start with the ice skating.


<--- it was fun! that's me waiting for the zamboni to clear out - and yes, that's how excited i was to get back out there. or was it to take a break? irrelevant. i'm pretty sure maddox and i were the only ones in our age group at the rink that day (our age group being eighteen - forty-five). i took a few years' worth of lessons as a kid but haven't been skating since, and i was hoping it would come back to me just like riding a bike (although i haven't done that in almost as many years either, so the jury's still out on whether that phrase even makes sense to me). anyway, i was wrong. it felt super foreign to get on the ice, and i spent about ten minutes shuffling along the wall and shouting ahead to maddox that this was the worst idea i'd ever had. but i eventually got the hang of it and was relatively cruising after the zamboni break. my absurdly flat feet, however, never stopped screaming. i remembered them hurting quite a bit during those middle-school lessons, but not like this. we still had a good enough time that we've decided to go back - me with arch supports in tow.




look at us go! err, look at us not falling! for some reason we only took pictures in the beginning when we sucked. we've promised ourselves to get better shots next time - it's harder than it looks.






onto the pot pie! here's what it takes:

one pound skinless, boneless chicken breast - cubed, two cups frozen veggies (carrots, peas, corn, and green beans), half cup sliced celery, one third cup butter, one third cup chopped onion, one third cup all-purpose flour, half teaspoon salt, quarter teaspoon black pepper, one and three quarter cups chicken broth, two thirds cup milk, and two unbaked pie crusts.


and here's what you do:

in a saucepan, combine chicken, frozen veggies, and celery. add water to cover and boil for fifteen minutes. remove from heat, drain and set aside. meanwhile, in another saucepan over medium heat, cook onions in butter until soft and translucent. then stir in flour, salt, and pepper. slowly stir in chicken broth and milk. simmer over medium-low heat until thick. remove from heat and set aside. place the chicken mixture in bottom pie crust and pour hot liquid mixture (aka delicious gravy) over it. cover with top crust, seal edges, and cut away excess dough. make several small slits in the top to allow steam to escape. bake for thirty minutes at four hundred and twenty-five degrees, then cool for ten minutes before serving.


it turned out pretty well - it was a bit bland although it looked perfect. and it reheats like a dream! in fact, i took it to work in my brand... new... wait for it...


...bento box! i brought some leftover pot pie, super tasty four-bean salad, and cheese slices to work today. during my walk to work some beans did sneak over to party with the cheddar, but otherwise it was a success!