Chicken and Vegetable Pot Pie

Ingredients

1-2 tsp olive oil
1 tbsp minced garlic
1/4 cup diced onion
1/4 cup diced bell pepper
1/4 cup diced mushrooms
1 carrot, finely diced
2 potatoes, diced (about 1/2 inch square or smaller)
1/2 cup green peas
1/2 cup corn
1/2 tsp Italian seasoning (or any combination of seasonings like thyme, rosemary, and oregano)
1/2 tsp Tony Chachere's Creole seasoning
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp black pepper
1-2 chicken breasts, diced
2 tbsp butter
2 tbsp flour
1 cup chicken stock
2 pie crusts

Directions
1. Preheat oven to 350* F.
2. Mince garlic. Chop onions and bell pepper. Peel and dice potatoes and carrots.
3. Saute garlic, onions, and bell pepper in olive oil.
4. Add diced chicken to the pan. Saute until the chicken is no longer pink on the outside.
5. Add potatoes, carrots, mushrooms, peas, and corn to pan.  Add seasonings. Saute for 5-10 minutes.
6. Place pie crust in pie pan (lightly greased) or a cast iron skillet (not greased, if seasoned). Set aside.
7. Move vegetable and chicken mixture to a large bowl. Set aside.
8. Melt butter in skillet. Add flour and whisk to combine. Cook for a few moments until it becomes a dark yellow to a light brown.
9. Add chicken stock to roux, a bit at a time, whisking to combine. Allow the mixture to thicken some. Make sure it is still a liquid and does not thicken to a paste.
10. Pour chicken stock mixture over vegetables and chicken in bowl. Stir to coat.
11. Pour mixture into pie crust.
12. Cover pot pie with second pie crust. Pinch edges to seal. Cut 3-4 one inch long slits in the top crust to let steam escape.
13. Bake at 350* F until the crust is golden brown, 45-60 minutes. Let sit for a few minutes to cool a bit before cutting and serving.

Tips

1. You can easily leave the chicken out and replace the chicken stock with vegetable broth to make a vegetarian version.
2. For the pie crusts, you can use store bought or homemade, but keep in mind you need either one already in a pan, plus a flat one to lay across the top or two flat ones (one for the bottom crust in the pan, one for the top crust). Don't buy two already in the pan.
3. You can mix and match vegetables to taste. I often substitute broccoli for some of the potatoes and peas.