Category: pies

Don’t have time to shop?  Or, perhaps, its snowing and you prefer, like me today, just staying inside all snuggly?   Maybe you need to put a meal together in a hurry?  Never fear!! You can prepare a pretty darn delicious meal with whatever you find in your fridge, freezer or cupboard.  I promise!

Example, this yummy One-Pan Biscuit Topped Pie was prepared with leftovers and a few items I found in my pantry and fridge. Found – two cans of tuna, so that’s what I used. Have leftover chicken?  Use that.  Have leftover ham or pork?  Use that.  You get the picture!

What else did I find .. a can of mushroom soup and a container of turkey broth. I also had lots of all-purpose flour, so I decided to prepare a ‘One Pan’ Pie topped with biscuit strips, which I hadn’t made in years.

My friend, Chef Mimi, reminded me that leftover stew would be wonderful made into a biscuit topped pie.  Thanks Mimi!   Check out Mimi’s latest recipe – Thai Chicken Curry with Zucchini ‘Noodles’.

I believe the inspiration to top the pie with biscuit strips came from this recent post!

Follow this link to recipe for not one – but two – biscuit recipes!

OK, now for the refrigerator.  I found some chunks of cooked potato and just a bit of fresh Italian parsley. So out they came.  ++ If you find some cooked rice or cooked macaroni, add that to your collection of ‘found things’.  I also dug up half a bag of frozen mixed vegetables- perfect.  ++  Now’s a good time to use-up any leftover peas or cooked broccoli you have lying around !!

Oh yeah!  I could already imagine the finished casserole coming out of the oven … the filling all hot and bubbly with lightly browned strips of biscuits crisscrossing the top.

INGREDIENTS      Oven at 375 F

       Pie Filling

++  I used a 9 1/2″ cast iron skillet but any oven-proof skillet would work just as well.  OR – a medium oven-proof casserole.

• olive oil – about 1 Tbs.
• 1 medium onion, chopped
• about a cup of cooked potatoes — or rice — or macaroni ++   Use whatever you have.  And if you have more than a cup – so much the better!
• 2 cups veggies   ++ Veggies should be cooked or you can use frozen, but uncooked veggies won’t work.
• 2 cans DRAINED tuna  – OR – about 1 cup cooked meat or fish   ++ Again, if you have more than a cup, that’s fine.
• 1 can cream of mushroom soup  ++ Hey – it’s leftovers.. whatever works, right?
• 1/2 cup turkey or chicken stock – OR – 1/2 cup hot water and 1 bullion cube
• 1/2 – 3/4 tsp. salt
• freshly ground pepper – to taste
• 1/2 tsp. garlic salt with parsley
• 1 1/2 tsp. Worcestershire sauce
• 2 tsp. fresh parsley, minced
• 1/4 tsp. browning sauce   ++  I use ‘Gravy Master’.  Browning sauce adds flavor and color.

       Biscuit Crust

++   To save time you can just drop scant tablespoons of biscuit dough on top of hot filling instead of cutting it into strips. 

• 1 cup flour
• 1/2 tsp. salt
• 1/2 tsp. sugar
• 1 1/2 tsp. baking powder
• 1/4 cup CHILLED butter  (1/2 stick)
• 6 Tb. milk
• 1 egg, beaten
• sesame seeds – optional

METHOD

Add about 1 Tbs. olive oil to skillet. On medium heat cook 1 medium onion, chopped, until tender.  Add 1 cup (or so) cooked potatoes, rice… whatever you may have.  Add 2 cups veggies, two cans tuna – OR – 1 cup cooked chicken, pork, ham, fish etc., 1 can cream of mushroom soup, 1/2 cup turkey or chicken stock, (OR – 1/2 cup hot water and 1 bullion cube), 1/2 – 3/4 tsp. salt, freshly ground pepper, 1/2 tsp. garlic salt with parsley, 1 1/2 tsp. Worcestershire sauce, 2 tsp. fresh parsley, minced and 1/4 tsp. browning sauce.

++  If you add cooked rice – or more of some of the ingredients – add a bit more stock.

Gently stir the ingredients until well mixed, lower heat and allow to simmer about 5 minutes.  Turn off heat but leave skillet on burner.

Now for the biscuits – this is super quick and easy!!  In a medium bowl place 1 cup flour, 1/2 tsp. salt, 1/2 tsp. sugar and 1 1/2 tsp. baking powder. Mix briefly with a fork. Add 1/4 cup CHILLED butter  (1/2 stick), cut into large pieces. Using either your fingers or a pastry blender (a.k.a. a pasty cutter), cut the butter into the flour until the mixture looks crumbly.  (I recently learned its not necessary to have every single smidge of butter mixed in.  The biscuits are actually flakier if you can see tiny bits of butter.)   Add 6 Tb. milk and mix until just combined.

  

Don’t have time to bother making the strips?  Drop biscuit dough by scant tablespoons onto hot filling.

 

Place dough on a well-floured surface – either a dish towel (tea towel) or even the counter. Pat into a 9″ circle (if you’re using a 9 1/2″ – 10” skillet) and cut into 8 strips.

Starting with the middle strip – ‘cause it’s the longest – place it in the middle of the skillet on top of the hot filling.   Add 2 biscuit strips to the right and 2 strips to the left of the first – for a total of 5 strips. Now add the three remaining strips diagonally to the first 5.

++  You don’t have to do the ‘over and under thing’, I just wanted to ’cause it reminded me of my Memere – who was an AWESOME cook and baker.  And she also had an amazing green thumb!

Beat 1 egg in a small bowl and brush over biscuit strips.  ++  I couldn’t find my brush, so I used my fingers, which worked just as well !!  Sprinkle with sesame seeds.

I baked my ‘One Pan’ Biscuit Crust Pie for 22 minutes until the filling was bubbling and the biscuits strips were browned.  ++ I’d ere on the side of cooking the pie a bit longer if you’re not sure – just keep your eye on the biscuit crust to make sure it’s not over-browning.  Enjoy!!

I’ve got my Cranky Pants on at the moment simply because I spent the whole day trying to work on this post.  Between the site crashing and then not saving my work…. well, you can just imagine . . .

 The good thing is, I’m enjoying a beer AND I’m going to eat more of this pie!    ; o )