CHICKEN POT (NO) PIE

from Lorianne Crook

Comfort food without the fat!

Ingredients:	2 teaspoons olive oil or canola oil 3/4 lb chicken meat trimmed of visible fat, cut into bite-size pieces (my husband likes chicken thighs, so that's what I use) 2 cups chicken stock or chicken broth 1 cup chopped yellow onion 1 large carrot, chopped fine 1 medium turnip, peeled and chopped a handful of mushrooms, chopped (I like shitake, but you can use button mushrooms) 2 cloves of garlic, minced or chopped 1/4 teaspoon dried marjoram 1/4 teaspoon dried thyme 1/2 teaspoon paprika 3/4 teaspoon salt fresh ground pepper to taste 1/3 cup or more peas, fresh or frozen 1/3 cup or more corn, fresh or frozen 1/2 teaspoon or more arrowroot powder (a natural thickening agent)

Directions:	1. In a large pot or Dutch oven, heat oil over medium-high heat. Brown the chicken, then pour off any excess fat. 2. Add chicken stock, onion, carrot, turnip, mushrooms, garlic, marjoram, thyme, paprika, salt, and pepper. Simmer covered for 45 minutes. 3. Stir in peas and corn, simmer uncovered for 10 more minutes. 4. Sprinkle arrowroot over stew and stir until thickened, about 3 minutes. Sprinkle additional arrowroot if needed. 5. Serve in bowls with cornbread on the side, or serve over cooked rice or egg noodles.

Ingredients:

2 teaspoons olive oil or canola oil
3/4 lb chicken meat trimmed of visible fat, cut into bite-size pieces
(my husband likes chicken thighs, so that's what I use)
2 cups chicken stock or chicken broth
1 cup chopped yellow onion
1 large carrot, chopped fine
1 medium turnip, peeled and chopped
a handful of mushrooms, chopped
(I like shitake, but you can use button mushrooms)
2 cloves of garlic, minced or chopped
1/4 teaspoon dried marjoram
1/4 teaspoon dried thyme
1/2 teaspoon paprika
3/4 teaspoon salt
fresh ground pepper to taste
1/3 cup or more peas, fresh or frozen
1/3 cup or more corn, fresh or frozen
1/2 teaspoon or more arrowroot powder (a natural thickening agent)

Directions:

1. In a large pot or Dutch oven, heat oil over medium-high heat. Brown the chicken, then pour off any excess fat.

2. Add chicken stock, onion, carrot, turnip, mushrooms, garlic, marjoram, thyme, paprika, salt, and pepper. Simmer covered for 45 minutes.

3. Stir in peas and corn, simmer uncovered for 10 more minutes.

4. Sprinkle arrowroot over stew and stir until thickened, about 3 minutes. Sprinkle additional arrowroot if needed.

5. Serve in bowls with cornbread on the side, or serve over cooked rice or egg noodles.

This chicken stew tastes just like the savory filling in the comfort food Chicken Pot Pie. You get all the flavor, but without the fuss (and fat!) of a crust. As with all my recipes, feel free to delete or add ingredients according to your own taste. In general, I use less meat - it still imparts great flavor but leaves room for more yummy and healthful vegetables!

NOTE: Don't freak out... but I add a little bit of seaweed to just about every soup I make! You never even know it's there but it packs a powerful nutritional punch. Believe me, my husband is a meat and potatoes guy who loves South Carolina barbecue and southern cooking of all kinds. But he laps this up and has no idea he's eating seaweed! Please don't tell him!

For this soup, I sprinkle wakame from Emerald Cove. Wakame looks like deep green little noodles. I sprinkle it on top of the stew the last 10 minutes or so of cooking. It tastes a bit like spinach and is a good source of the minerals magnesium, calcium, iodine and iron. It's also high in vitamins A, C, E, E, and K, as well as folate and riboflavin, and has properties thought to play a role in preventing certain types of cancer.

ANOTHER NOTE: As with most stews, this one is even better the next day. When re-heating, feel free to add some additional chicken stock or vegetable stock for better consistency, especially if you are serving over rice or noodles... or with cornbread!