Homemade Chicken Pot Pie

3 split chicken breasts
olive oil
fine sea salt
freshly ground black pepper
poultry seasoning
4 tablespoons butter
1 medium yellow onion, chopped
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
3 cups chicken stock
1/4 cup heavy cream
1 pound pearl onions, peeled and blanched for 4 minutes
4 carrots, sliced and blanched for 2 minutes
1-1/2 cups frozen peas
1/2 cup finely chopped parsley
1 pound puff pastry, recipe follows
1 large egg, beaten, for egg wash

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.

Rinse chicken breasts and pat dry. Add to baking sheet. Drizzle with oil and rub all over. Season with salt, pepper, and poultry seasoning. Roast until juices run clear, about 30 to 40 minutes. An instant-read thermometer when inserted into the thickest part of the meat should read 165 degrees F. Let chicken cool until easy to handle. Discard skin and remove bones. Cut into large cubes.

Heat chicken stock until very hot. Pour a bit of stock into roasting pan to loosen brown bits; add it back into stock.

Melt butter in a large pot over medium-low heat. Add chopped onion and sauté until soft and translucent, about 10 minutes. Add flour and cook, constantly stirring, for 2 minutes. Pour in hot stock and stir to combine. Simmer on low, while stirring, until liquid thickens, about 5 minutes. Season with salt and pepper. Add cream, cubed chicken, pearl onions, carrots, peas, and parsley. Mix well to combine. Divide the mixture among 4 oven-proof bowls.

On a well-floured work surface, roll out puff pastry to 1/4-inch thick. Cut 4 discs to fit each bowl. Slash a few vent holes in each disc. Brush the edge of each bowl with egg wash. Place dough on top. Brush dough with egg wash. Place bowls on a baking sheet lined with aluminum foil. Bake until pastry is golden and filling is bubbling, about 40 minutes. Yield: 4 servings.

Puff Pastry

Adapted from a recipe by Michel Richard in Baking with Julia by Dorie Greenspan.

2-1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1-1/4 cups cake flour
1-1/2 teaspoons salt
1-1/4 cups ice water
2 cups (4 sticks) chilled unsalted butter

Combine flours and salt in a food processor. Pulse to aerate. Add the water and pulse until a ball forms. Remove and form into a disc. Slash the top in a tic-tac-toe pattern. Wrap in a damp towel and refrigerate for about 5 minutes.

Meanwhile, place the butter between two sheets of plastic wrap and beat with a rolling pin until about 1-inch thick. Refrigerate until ready to use.

Unwrap the dough and place on a well-floured work surface, preferably marble or granite. Flatten and roll the dough into a large square. Roll the edges thin while keeping the center thicker. Place the butter in the middle of the dough and fold over the corners overlapping like an envelope. Press the rolling pin against the edges, making sure the package is square.

Make sure the work surface, dough, and rolling pin are well-floured. Roll the package of dough into a rectangle, three times as long as it is wide. Brush off any excess flour. Fold the dough in thirds, up from the bottom and down from the top, like a business letter. Rotate the dough counter-clockwise so that the closed fold is to the left.

Roll the dough into a rectangle again, and fold into thirds again. The second turn is now complete. Wrap the dough in plastic and refrigerate for 30 minutes to 1 hour.

Repeat again twice, wrap, and refrigerate. Then repeat again twice to equal six folds. Wrap the dough in plastic and refrigerate until ready to use. Leftover dough can be wrapped in plastic and frozen. Defrost before using. Yield: 2-1/2 pounds pastry.

-Recipe courtesy of Joseph Erdos at Gastronomer's Guide