Chicken Pot Pie with Sweet Potato Crust

After a really cruddy summer we finally got some really beautiful weather in October. But the rain is back and it brought the wind and cold with it....For us that means getting back in the kitchen and cooking up some of our favorite meals. Most chef love cooking this time of year we love those cheaper cuts that we braise for hours to create intense flavors and tender textures. When we created this blog we wanted to create recipes that use the best of the season and that are easy and creative.  John and I took a traditional chicken pot pie and layered the top with thin slices of sweet potato to create a simpler version of a crust. Sweet potatoes are so good for you and save you time over a traditional crust. You can add other vegetables to this dish like parsnips or diced butternut squash. This can also be a great vegetarian dish take out the chicken and up the vegetables and use vegetable stock instead of chicken stock and you have a rich vegetable pot pie. Eat this now!

Chicken Pot Pie with Sweet Potato Crust

Serves: 6

¼ cup extra virgin olive oil

1 ½ pounds chicken thighs, diced

1 onion, diced

3 cloves garlic, chopped

About 2 cups diced carrots, about 4 medium carrots

About 2 cups quartered button mushrooms

About 2 cups diced Yukon Gold potatoes, about 3 medium potatoes

¼ cup all purpose flour

4 cups hot chicken stock

Salt and black pepper

2 medium sweet potatoes, peeled sliced about ¼ inch thick

Extra virgin olive oil to drizzle

1 teaspoon sweet paprika

1 tablespoon chopped fresh rosemary

¼ cup finely grated parmesan cheese

Heat a very large sauté pan with olive oil until smoking hot. Add the chicken and sear well on all sides about 3-4 minutes. Add the onion and cook until the onion is tender about 4 minutes. Add the garlic, carrots, mushrooms, and potato and quickly sauté. Add the flour and sauté about 2 minutes. Whisk in the hot stock and mix until smooth. Season the chicken mixture with salt and black pepper.  Pour into a large baking dish. Arrange the sweet potatoes on top of the chicken mixture. Sprinkle with a bit of salt. Bake in the oven about 45 minutes until the potatoes are tender.  Top the sweet potatoes with paprika, rosemary, and cheese and bake another 5 minutes. Remove from the oven and allow to cool about 5 minutes. Serve warm.