Yummy Chicken Pie

First, thank you for your kind comments yesterday and noticing my absence from food blogging. I'm starting to feel more like me with food, but still eating pretty bland and still not cooking as much as I like to. So yes, my blogging will be pretty random still for a while. We've also just moved houses and spent a lot of time picking up food and popping things into the oven. Topping off my busy life, I'm back at work after the summer break and my oldest has started school. He's very excited and loving kindergarten. More on that over at Kristen's Contemplations. Now onto the recipe!
My husband is English originally and grew up on meat pies. I did not. And I didn't really get what he was talking about. Each time we've visited his relatives in England he's happily eat his meat pies and talk about how much he loves them and still I didn't clue in. So we've been married for over 7 years and now I've finally made him his first meat pie.

There are 2 steps to making a good chicken pie - the pastry part and the filling part. You could buy pre-made pie pastry and save yourself some time. I made a 2 crust pie pastry recipe the night before.

2 crust pie pastry

2 cups all purpose flour
1/2 tsp salt
2/3 cup shortening
2-3 tbsp cold water

Mix flour and salt together in a bowl. Cut in the shortening using a pastry cuttter until the mixture is crumbly (about the size of peas). Sprinkle with cold water and use a fork to moisten the dough.
Divide the pastry into 2 parts. Gather each part into a ball. Roll out separately into 2 flattened rounds. Cover with plastic wrap and leave in the fridge for at least half an hour (if you make it the day before like I did, remove the pastry before you need it to soften it and roll it out flat.

The filling part

1/3 cup butter or margarine
1/3 cup flour
1/3 cup chopped onion
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper
1 3/4 cups chicken broth
2/3 cup milk
1 cup peas (I thawed from frozen)
3 carrots, peeled and cut into small pieces
2-3 cups chopped cooked chicken (this is one of those great recipes where a store bought rotisserie chicken comes in handy)

Melt butter in a saucepan over medium heat. Add flour, onion, salt and pepper and cook until bubbly. Remove from heat and add the chicken broth and milk. Whisk it all together . Add carrots and peas. Put the saucepan back on the heat and heat until boiling. Boil for one minute. Remove from heat. Add chicken and set aside.

Pre-heat oven to 425*.

Roll out pastry. Ease into 9x9x2 pan (I used a corningware casserole dish instead and it worked just as well. Pour chicken mixture into the dish. Cover with the remaining pastry.

Bake for 35 minutes, serve and enjoy!