Leftover Turkey and Mashed Potato Pot Pie

Sigh. Comfort Food. I love it. Especially when the temperature outside my front door is barely hovering above zero.  Yes. I said ZERO.

A few weeks ago, in LA, a friend and I visited a delicious restaurant downtown called The Farm. We bundled up and walked over, it was a chilly 60 degrees (Ha!), we wanted comfort food, and the chicken pot pie they served did the trick exquisitely. What I loved most? The mashed potatoes in the bottom of the pot pie. Something I never would have come up with, and yet, it took the idea of comfort food to a whole new level.

Fast forward a couple of weeks, and my husband thaws the extra turkey we had in our freezer, the one we never used for Thanksgiving (I decided to brine the turkey and so we used a fresh one). So we had our very own Thanksgiving-ish meal on a random Thursday in December. Go figure. And now my fridge is exploding with turkey leftovers.

And here’s where it all comes together… I decided to make a pot pie like the one we shared at The Farm with the leftover turkey. This would have been even easier if we had leftover mashed potatoes, but that bowl had been wiped clean. Can someone say “carb lovers?” Oh, I guess I just did.

I realize that by now most of you don’t have leftover turkey and mashed potatoes, unless you froze some from Thanksgiving. But don’t worry, the potatoes are easy enough to make and you can use chicken or turkey… whatever’s in your fridge. You can even go the veggie route and make this sans meat. Just go for it!

See, I’m easy like that.

Ohh baby, come to mama.

Creamy Mashed Potatoes
6 Russet Or Yukon Gold Potatoes
3 tbls butter
1 ounce cream cheese, softened
1/4 cup half-and-half, or heavy cream
salt and pepper to taste

Preparation Instructions
Peel, wash and quarter the potatoes. Bring a large pot of water to a simmer and add the potatoes. Bring to a boil and cook for 15 to 20 minutes. When they’re cooked through, the fork should easily slide into the potatoes with no resistance, and the potatoes should almost, but not totally, fall apart.
Drain the potatoes in a large colander. When the potatoes have finished draining, place them back into the dry pot and put the pot on the stove. Mash the potatoes over low heat, allowing all the steam to escape, before adding in all the other ingredients.
Turn off the stove and add butter, cream cheese and half-and-half. Mash! Add salt and pepper to taste.

Leftover Turkey and Mashed Potato Pot Pie
2 pie crusts
2 tbls butter
1/2 cup finely diced onion
2 cups leftover turkey, any kind
1/4 cup flour
2 cups low-sodium chicken or turkey broth
1 cup heavy cream
1 bag frozen peas and carrots
2-3 cups leftover mashed potatoes
Fresh thyme, chopped
salt and pepper to taste

Preparation Instructions
Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
Melt butter in a skillet or pot. Add onion and cook a couple of minutes.
Add turkey and stir. Sprinkle flour over mixture and stir. Cook over medium heat for a couple of minutes, stirring constantly.
Pour in chicken or turkey broth, stirring constantly. Pour in cream. Add frozen vegetables.
Bring to a slow boil and allow mixture to cook and thicken for a few minutes. Add salt and pepper to taste (do not underseason), and fresh or dried thyme to taste. Do one final taste at the end and add seasoning to taste.
Press one pie crust into casserole dish or deep pie pan.
Spread mashed potatoes over the pie crust and pour vegetable mixture over top.
Place the second pie crust on top of the pot pie mixture, and press crust into the sides of the dish. Cut vents in the top of the crust.
Bake for 30 minutes or until very golden and bubbly.
Let stand for 15 minutes before serving.

Enjoy!