Description
This Easter Bunny Chicken Pot Pie is a delightful, festive twist on the classic comfort food. Featuring tender chicken and vibrant vegetables in a creamy sauce, all nestled in a flaky homemade pie crust decorated with charming bunny ears and face details, this dish is perfect for celebrating the holiday with family.
Ingredients
Scale
Filling
- 1 lb chicken, cubed (frozen or fresh)
- 1 cup carrots, chopped
- 1/2 cup green peas, frozen
- 1/2 cup sliced celery
- 1/3 cup onion, chopped
Sauce
- 1/3 cup butter
- 1/3 cup all-purpose flour
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
- 1/4 teaspoon celery seed
- 1 can chicken broth (about 14 oz)
- 2/3 cup milk
Pie Crust & Decoration
- 3 unbaked pie crusts (9 inch)
- Popsicle sticks (for bunny ears support, optional)
- Additional green onions (for whiskers)
Instructions
- Preheat Oven: Preheat your oven to 425°F (220°C) to prepare for baking the pot pies and decorative ears.
- Cook Vegetables and Chicken: Chop celery and carrots. In a large pot, combine the chopped celery, carrots, green peas, and cubed chicken, then cover with water. Bring to a boil and cook for 15 minutes. Remove from heat and set aside. Reserve about 8 carrot slices and 8 peas for the bunny face decoration later.
- Prepare Pie Crusts: Roll out your pie crust dough. Using 6 oz souffle dishes (or your preferred small pie dishes), cut circular crusts slightly larger than the dishes. Place the bottom crust in each dish, pressing it onto the bottom and sides so some crust extends beyond the top edge.
- Create Bunny Ears: Use pie dough scraps to cut out bunny ear shapes. Attach each ear to a popsicle stick for support and use extra dough scraps to decorate and press along the edges of the pie crust as desired.
- Prepare Sauce and Assemble: Bake the bunny ears separately for about 10 minutes. Meanwhile, in a saucepan over medium heat, sauté onions in butter until soft. Stir in flour, salt, pepper, and celery seed. Gradually add chicken broth and milk, stirring constantly, and simmer over medium-low heat until sauce thickens. Remove from heat. Drain the cooked chicken and vegetables, then place this mixture into the bottom pie crusts. Pour the prepared sauce over the mixture. Cover with the top crust, seal the edges, and trim excess dough. Cut two small steam vents where the eyes would be and another where the nose would be to allow steam to escape during baking.
- Bake and Decorate: Place the pies in the preheated oven for about 30 minutes or until the crusts turn a light golden brown. Once baked, add green onion slices as whiskers, peas for eyes, and carrot slices for the bunny’s nose. Insert the baked bunny ear crusts behind the face; the popsicle sticks will help keep the ears upright.
Notes
- Using frozen chicken is fine; just ensure it is fully cooked in the boiling step.
- The popsicle sticks are optional but help keep the bunny ears standing upright during and after baking.
- If souffle dishes are not available, you can use other small oven-safe pie dishes or ramekins.
- Leftover pie dough scraps can be creatively used for additional decorations on top of the pot pie.
- Make sure to cut steam vents to prevent the crust from becoming soggy or bursting.
