Some Damn Good Chicken Pot Pie

I'm all about saving and not wasting. And with those values in place, I made some damn good chicken pot pie. I had some canned Lima Bean leftovers, leftover corn and peas cooked in butter (real), and a need to get rid of them. I did not want to throw them away since I had recently read that the average American family throws away a pound of food per week--that's just fresh food. Lord knows if you take leftovers into account. So I was trying to save money by not wasting. Because wasting anything essentially boils down to wasting my money. Plus, you know the saying, "There are children in Africa starving and you just waste perfectly good food." Another good thing about using leftovers is a cheaper meal. Hey, I'm all for that. Home cooking is better for you anyway--you can control what goes into your meal. And since my first pregnancy, I have been a bit funny about what's in my food. So enough yapping, lets give you the recipe so you can eat Some Damn Good Chicken Pot Pie. Oh BTW, I don't always use measurements with my ingredients. And feel free to substitute ingredients. I won't be offended!

Some Damn Good Chicken Pot Pie

Ingredients:
1 package chicken tenderloins (the strips for those who don't read the labels)

1 can of Lima Beans (or frozen, if you prefer. Remember I had leftovers.)

Frozen corn--about half a bag (Remember I had leftovers).

Frozen Peas--a full bag (Remember I had leftovers).

milk

cornstarch or arrow root powder (I used the arrowroot)

black pepper and all purpose seasoning

corn meal

1/4 cup of vegetable oil or shortening

Olive oil and real butter

Instructions:
Preheat oven to 350 F. Cook chicken strips in a bit of olive oil and a pat of butter on medium heat. The butter helps with flavor, you can omit it. Cook until golden on each side. For the Love of God, don't fry them dry. Just until the juices run clear. They should still be very juicy when you remove them form the pan. Meanwhile you should be heating up your veggies in a separate pot.

After removing the chicken form the pan, do not cut off the heat. Add a bit of milk and scrape up any bits of chicken. Now mix some milk and arrow root powder together and mix thoroughly. Pour into pan. Add pepper and all purpose seasoning. Stir constantly until it thickens. Feel free to add more milk or arrow root powder if needed, you're making gravy. Add hot veggies. Stir around and let mingle in the heat. Chop chicken strips and add to veggies. Turn heat to low. Make corn bread according to the back of the corn meal bag (without cooking it!). You can use a box mix if you like, but corn meal is much cheaper. Pour chicken mixture into a greased casserole dish or 9X13 inch pan. Pour corn meal mixture over hot chicken mixture. Pop into oven and cook for 20-30 minutes, until cornbread is done.

Tip: Whenever you are putting a bread (like biscuits or cornbread) over a pot pie, you want to make sure the pot pie filling is good and hot. This way your bread cooks all the way through, from top to bottom.

Voila! You have some damn good chicken pot pie.

Now remember, you can use any leftover veggies and meat you want. You can use a jar of gravy. You can use biscuits instead of corn bread. Hell, you can even use frozen or canned biscuits. The point is to cook it at home, use leftovers, and do it cheap.