Chicken Pot Pie with Rosemary-Cream Cheese Pastry

Directions

For the pastry

• Place the flour and salt in the bowl of a food processor. Pulse the blend. Add the butter and cream cheese, and pulse until blended and forms a ball. If needed, add a bit of ice water, 1 teaspoon at t time, until the dough comes together. Divide the dough in two, and wrap each half in plastic wrap, flattening each into a disc. Refrigerate at least one hour.

For the chicken

• Place the whole chicken in a large stock pot and surround with the carrot, celery and onion. Sprinkle with salt. Fill the pot with water until the chicken is complete covered. Bring to a boil over high heat; reduce heat to medium-low and simmer rapidly until chicken is cooked through, about one hour. Remove chicken from the pot, reserving 2 cups of the cooking stock for the sauce. Allow the chicken to cool completely, and then use two forks (or your hands) to pick apart the meat into large chunks, discarding the skin and bones. Place meat in a bowl and set aside.

For the sauce

• In a heavy sauce pan, melt the butter over medium heat. Add the four, whisking constantly, until the flour smells toasty, about 2 minutes. Gradually add the milk, whisking vigorously to avoid any lumps. Whisk in the chicken stock, rosemary, thyme, salt, pepper and nutmeg, and cook until sauce is thick enough to coat the back of a wooden spoon, about 10 minutes. Set aside to cool slightly.

For the filling

• In a large saute pan, heat the olive over a medium-high flame. Add the sweet potatoes, carrots and leeks, and season with the salt and pepper. Stir in the rosemary and cayenne (if using). Saute for about 3 minutes, then reduce heat to medium-low, cover the pan, and continue cooking the vegetables, covered, until they are tender, about 15 minutes more. Stir in the shredded chicken. Pour cooled sauce over mixture, and stir to combine.
• Preheat oven to 425. Coat a an extra-large roasting pan with non-stick spray, and ladle half of the chicken mixture into the bottom. Place one of the discs of dough on a generously floured surface, and roll to a 1/8" thickness. Use a pizza cutter to slice the dough into 1/2" strips, and layer the strips over the filling in a lattice pattern. Place pan in oven and bake for 15 minutes, until dough is is lightly browned. Remove from oven, and top with the remaining chicken mixture. Cut the remaining disc of dough into strips as you did with the previous disc, and arrange the strips on top of the chicken mixture in a lattice pattern. Place back in the oven and bake 35 minutes more, until crust is lightly browned and mixture is bubbly. Cool 10 minutes before serving.