Recipe - Chicken Pot Pie (17th Century)

8 tablespoon Butter, sweet
One half teaspoon Nutmeg, grated
One half teaspoon Cinnamon, ground
5 tablespoon Flour
3 cup Chicken stock
One half cup Heavy cream
1 One half teaspoon Salt
Three fourths teaspoon Pepper, black
One half cup Prunes, pitted; coarsley
chopped
One half cup Currants
One half pound Mushrooms, quartered
1 Pepper, Red bell;
cored/seeded/coarsely
chopped
1 pound Pearl onions, frozen; thawed
6 cup Chicken, cooked; cubed
1 pack Peas, frozen; thawed
One half Flaky pastry recipe
Egg wash

In a 2 quart saucepan, melt 4 tablespoons butter over low heat. Add the
nutmeg and cinnamon and cook for 1 minute. Sprinkle the flour over the
butter, and with a wooden spoon, stir to blend. Increase the heat to
moderate and slowly add the chicken stock, blending well after each
addition so that there are no lumps. Mix in the cream, salt and pepper.
Gradually bring the mixture to a boil, stirring constantly. When it has
thickened, add the prunes and currants. Cook over low heat 10 minutes.

Meanwhile, melt the remaining 4 tablespoons of butter in a saut^B pan over
moderately low heat. When it foams, add the mushrooms and peppers. Saut^B
until soft, about 5 minutes. Add the onions, increase the heat to moderate,
and saut^B for 15 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Place the chicken in a large mixing bowl.
Scrape the sauteed vegetables and peas on top, then pour the prune sauce
over all. Toss gently to distribute all the ingredients. Taste for
seasonings and adjust if needed.

Spoon the chicken mixture into a deep 45 quart ovenproof casserole. Roll
out the flaky pastry or puff pastry and, using the casserole's lid as a
guide, with the tip of a sharp knife cut it to fit. Lay the pastry over the
chicken mixture and brush it with the egg wash.

Bake for 6070 minutes, or until the pastry is golden brown. Serve
immediately. Serves 1012

Early cookbooks reveal that chicken pie was every bit as popular as roasted
turkey for the prinicipal entree at Thanksgiving dinner. Al though it's
hard to believe, some familes even served both. This recipe, with its
bizarre inclusion of prunes and currants, nutmeg and cinnamon, has been
developed from a very early recipe. Do not be put off by the fruit and
spices. Their presence is unobtrusive and they enhance what can be a very
pedestrian sauce, turning it into a magnificent, if mysterious, backdrop
for the chicken.

SOURCE:*Yankee Magazine, November 1993
POSTED BY: Jim Bodle 10/93
Fidonet COOKING echo

From Gemini's MASSIVE MealMaster collection at www.synapse.com/~gemini