I had an epically bad day at work recently. I made a small mistake, and like an idiot, tried to cover my tracks, thereby making everything a small mistake into a huge incident. It didn’t help the already tenuous relationship I have with my boss and my job. Days like that call for two things: wine and comfort food.
With this meat-eating experiment, one neat thing is that I get to try foods that are so far out of the realm of vegetables that no vegetarian substitute can do. Case in point: chicken pot pie. Yes, you can technically make this dish vegetarian with mock chicken or tofu and vegetable broth instead of chicken broth. But much like chicken soup, I think that many substitutions ruins the essence of the fact that you are eating a Pie Made of Chicken.
The recipe, which I’ll call “Salmonella poisoning won’t solve your problems so cook the Chicken Pot Pie right the first time,” was pretty darn good. And comforting. I didn’t have a recipe with me when I went to the grocery store, so I grabbed a Chicken Pot Pie from the pre-made foods section and bought all the ingredients that were listed on the label. Lo and behold, those ingredients matched the ones on this recipe, which I used for my creation. I even made the crust from scratch, using an empty wine bottle in lieu of a rolling pin, one kitchen staple that is not part of my collection. The results can be seen here:
Comfort Food is Salty!
Do you like how I put a “C” on there made with the excess pastry? We’ll say that it stands for “chicken” or “comfort” or “Carolyn” (For some reason that this blogger, named “Noelle,” wouldn’t understand….)
In conclusion: I like Chicken Pot Pie. I certainly felt comforted, like a hug from my mother right inside my stomach. I still had to go to work the next day and deal with the shit storm that I created, but for a few moments over dinner, nothing was wrong. And the leftovers are coming with me for lunch next week, to have my comfort waiting for me at noon. I hope that by the time I finish this meat experiment, all will be well at work, and I will find comfort in hummus again.
Posted by Abby on February 13, 2010 at 5:02 pm
Mmmm… chicken pot pie. Good idea to read the ingredients list off the box and then make your own. Hope things improve at work for you.
The only problem is that I ended up buying some cornstarch that I don’t think I need…
Posted by lucy on February 13, 2010 at 6:25 pm
Interesting. As an omni who eats vega*n a lot, I find pot pie to be a dish quite open to de-meating, and I usually prefer it that way. It has more flavor and textures once meat is out the of way.
If you have a recipe you can send me, I’d love to try it out for vegan April…
Posted by Courtney on February 13, 2010 at 8:39 pm
So are there any vegetarian dishes that give you the same comforting feeling? Or is meat the only thing that can do that? I’m curious.
Mac & cheese comes to mind… I think any food that’s soft, easy and warm can fit the bill. And there is a connection between how unhealthy it is and how comforting it is.
Posted by jennifer on February 14, 2010 at 4:29 pm
For the record, I am PRO comfort food and ANTI shit storm.
Your chicken pot pie looked awfully darn good. I’m craving it now (KFC has a really good chicken pot pie
).
My comfort food of choice is peanut butter marshmallow toast. It makes me feel like a kid.
Posted by Kristabella on February 15, 2010 at 2:11 pm
I love pot pie! The ones in the freezer section by Stouffer’s are really good too, in a pinch.
Posted by Allie on February 15, 2010 at 5:25 pm
I’ve never actually had chicken pot pie. It looks like great comfort food. Although, I’m really sorry you needed some comfort!
Posted by bing on February 15, 2010 at 9:17 pm
I also had a couple of rough days at work last week. Unfortunately it stressed me out so bad that I couldn’t eat. But that pot pie does look delish! Hope everything’s smoothed over.
Posted by Grey Boy on February 21, 2010 at 5:53 pm
Last time I cooked with an empty wine bottle I couldn’t eat either.