winter

Nothing says comfort food like roast chicken, and although we are finally crawling out of the depths of winter (it felt like this one lasted forever), comfort is still what I’m after. I’ve seen lots of recipes for roast chicken with wine, but I’m more of a beer girl myself so I wanted to experiment with a beer roasted chicken (similar to beer-can chicken, but classier!).

One good thing about winter is the variety of seasonal brews available, often with a slightly spicy character. I used Samuel Adams Winter Lager, which is a hoppy, bock-style beer with notes of orange, cinnamon, and ginger, although any slightly hoppy beer with citrus flavours could be used. (Samuel Adams is available in Canada at the LCBO or The Beer Store in Ontario, BCLDB in British Columbia or Liquor Depot in Alberta. I only wish I’d been able to find this Samuel Adams beer!). To compliment the beer, I smeared a flavoured butter of orange zest, fennel seeds, and chili flakes under the the skin of the chicken, stuffed the cavity with orange and a clove of garlic, and basted it with beer while it roasted. The pan juices, full of flavoured butter and slightly reduced caramelized beer, were turned into a delicious, drunken gravy with a little extra beer and a squeeze of orange juice.

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I know it’s about three months late to be posting a recipe for using up Christmas turkey, but I’ve had some turkey leftovers languishing in my freezer just begging to be made into a pie. Who am I to refuse such a request? This pie will not only make your house smell fantastic, but its comfort food mix of turkey, roasted root vegetables, and biscuits will make a dreary mid-winter day seem less so!

I chose to top this pie with biscuits because they are easy and good for soaking up gravy, but it would be equally tasty with your favorite pie crust in place of the biscuits (make it a single or double crust – your choice). If you go the pie crust route, I recommend working some parmesan and black pepper into it – it’s a great combination.

Turkey Pie with Parmesan & Black Pepper Biscuits

Biscuits

In a medium bowl, stir together:

1 1/2 cups flour

3 tsp baking powder

1/4 tsp freshly ground black pepper

large pinch of salt

With a pastry cutter, cut it:

5 tbsp cold unsalted butter

Blend until the butter is in pea-sized chunks. Add:

1/2 cup finely grated parmesan cheese

Toss the parmesan into the butter-flour mixture, then make a well in the center and add:

3/4 cup cold milk

With a fork, stir in the milk with as few strokes as possible, using a folding motion to blend in the flour from the bottom of the bowl. It should just come together in a shaggy, sticky dough.

Turn the dough out onto a floured surface and knead it gently 2 – 3 times to gather it all together. Pat it out into a rectangular shape and fold it in thirds like a letter.

Pat it down again into a rectangle and repeat. After the second fold, shape the dough into a circle and pat it out into a 7-inch round. Cut it into 8 wedges with a sharp knife, using a straight downward cutting motion (this will help the cut edge rise up and be flaky).

Transfer the wedges to a lightly floured plate, cover them with plastic, and refrigerate while you make the filling.

Turkey & Roasted Vegetable Filling

Preheat the oven to 425˚F. Chop the following into 1/2 inch chunks:

2 medium carrots (about 1 cup)

2 medium parsnips (about 1 cup)

4 – 5 button mushrooms (about 1 cup)

1 large or 2 small leeks, white part only (about 1 1/2 cups – wash them very well!)

Spread the vegetables in a single layer on a baking sheet and toss with:

a few tablespoons of olive oil

generous salt and pepper

Roast the vegetables for 20 – 25 minutes, stirring halfway through, until softened and starting to brown.

Meanwhile, prepare the gravy. In a large pan over medium heat, melt:

2 tbsp unsalted butter

When it foams, add:

2 heaping tbsp all purpose flour

Whisk and cook for a few minutes, until it starts to smell nutty.

While whisking constantly, slowly pour in:

2 cups chicken or turkey stock

It will seem very thin and watery but will thicken up when it reaches a boil. Raise the heat to medium-high to bring it to a boil and thicken, then reduce back down to medium-low.

Season to taste with:

a few dashes of Worchestershire sauce

~ 1 tbsp soy sauce (less if using salted stock)

~ 1 – 2 tsp Marmite

1/4 tsp garlic powder

1/2 tsp dried sage

1/2 tsp dried thyme

salt and pepper

Worchestershire, soy sauce, and Marmite are my fail-safe ingredients for awesome gravy. They add great umami taste as well as saltiness, and they give the gravy a beautiful rich, dark colour. Marmite weirds some people out, but it is killer in gravy.

Remove the gravy from the heat. To make it a bit creamy (totally optional), stir in:

2 tbsp sour cream or cream cheese

Mix into the gravy:

the roasted vegetables (straight from the oven, preferably)

3 – 4 cups of chopped cooked turkey

Pour the whole thing into a 9-inch pie plate.

Top it with the chilled biscuits and brush them with an egg wash (1 egg mixed with 1 tbsp water).

Bake the pie at 425˚F for 20-25 minutes, until the gravy is bubbling and the biscuits are golden brown and puffed. Let it cool for just a few minutes before serving.