Chicken a la King

On Friday, I spent much of the day shopping in the midst of Christmas chaos. Since we got take-out the night before, I knew I had to make dinner even though I didn't feel like it. I found this recipe online and decided to give it a try.

Chicken a la King is like the more sophisticated cousin of chicken pot pie. It has a delicious, creamy chicken sauce that is served over puff pastry shells (or you can substitute toast points, rice, noodles or biscuits). Because I had the oven preheated, this recipe just took about half an hour from start to finish. Gotta love that! And in my opinion, it's fancy enough to be served to guests, especially if you use the puff pastry shells.

FYI - Each box of puff pastry shells contains 6 shells and they aren't too big. Andrew ate 2 shells for dinner, so if you're serving lots of men, you may want to buy more than one box of puff pastry. The recipe makes plenty of sauce so you wouldn't need to double it. If you're serving mostly women, then one box should be enough.

Chicken a la King - serves 4-6

adapted from RealMomKitchen.com

1 box puff pastry shells

6 T butter

1 c fresh mushrooms, sliced

3 stalks celery plus their leaves, chopped

1/2 white onion, chopped

1 garlic clove, minced

1/4 c white wine

1/8 - 1/4 t dried sage

1/8 - 1/4 t dried thyme

2 cooked chicken breasts, chopped (I used a rotisserie chicken to save time)

1 4-oz jar diced pimentos

5 T flour

1 1/2 c fat free half and half

1 c chicken broth

salt and pepper, to taste

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. As soon as oven is preheated, put puff pastry shells in to cook for 20-25 minutes.

Meanwhile, in a large saucepan over medium heat, melt butter. Add mushrooms, celery and onions. Cook about 3 minutes, or until the veggies are just starting to soften. Add the garlic and the wine and cook until the veggies are soft but not browned, about 4-5 more minutes, stirring often. Season with sage, thyme and a little salt and pepper.

Add chicken and pimentos. Stir in flour, one tablespoon at a time. Slowly add in half-and-half and chicken broth, stirring well to prevent lumps. Continue to cook over medium heat until mixture has thickened sufficiently. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Spoon chicken mixture over puff pastry shells and serve immediately.