Cake, Batter, and Bowl

Jerk Chicken and Sweet Potato Pot Pies

Main Dishes

I’m sort of in denial that it’s somehow already November, but the bright side is that peppermint mochas and gingerbread lattes are back, and I’m finally getting some use out of all my cute boots. Plus, now that there’s a bit of a chill in the air, I’ve been brainstorming up some ideas for comfort food! Soup and mac & cheese always top my list, but chicken pot pie also warms me up, especially when it’s topped with puff pastry.

For my version, I made individual servings with my cute little French onion soup bowls again, but any small oven-safe dishes would work well. I couldn’t resist topping them with the aforementioned puff pastry, and I decided to give them a bit of Caribbean twist. I spiced the filling with jerk seasoning and added roasted sweet potatoes and plantains in with the chicken. Ahh, plantains just make me happy, and I really loved this flavor combo. It’s a cold weather comfort dish with some island flare, ironic perhaps, but very tasty!

Jerk Chicken and Sweet Potato Pot Pies
Printable Recipe

Ingredients:
2 pounds sweet potatoes, peeled and cut into bite-sized pieces
3 tablespoons olive oil, divided
2 medium yellow plantains with brown-black spots, peeled and cut into bite-sized pieces
4 boneless, skinless, chicken breasts, cut into bite-sized pieces
1 yellow onion, chopped
2 garlic cloves, minced
1/4 cup unsalted butter
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
3 cups milk (I used 2%)
1 cup low-sodium chicken broth
1 1/2 tablespoons jerk seasoning
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1 box puff pastry sheets, thawed
1 large egg
1 tablespoon water

Directions:
Heat oven to 400˚F. Place sweet potato pieces on a large cookie sheet and drizzle with 2 tablespoons olive oil. Mix until evenly coated with oil and roast at 400˚F for 15 minutes. Add plantains to the cookie sheet, mix well, and roast for an additional 10 minutes at 400˚F or until sweet potatoes and plantains are tender; place roasted veggies in a large bowl.

Heat remaining 1 tablespoon olive oil over medium heat in a large nonstick skillet and add chicken pieces. Sauté for 5 to 7 minutes or until chicken is cooked through and no longer pink in the center. Remove chicken from heat and place in the bowl with the sweet potatoes and plantains. Add chopped onions to the skillet and sauté for 5 to 7 minutes or until tender; add garlic and sauté 1 additional minute. Add onions to the bowl with the veggies and chicken and mix well.

Melt butter in a large saucepan over medium heat. Whisk in flour until smooth and cook one more minute or until mixture starts to brown. Whisk in milk, chicken broth, jerk seasoning, and salt and simmer for 5 minutes or until thickened. Place in the bowl with the chicken and veggies and stir until well combined. Evenly distribute filling into 6 mini oven-safe pot pie serving dishes. Place dishes on a large cookie sheet.

Roll out puff pastry and cut to fit over the 6 dishes (I used 3/4 of the package). Place cut puff pastry on top of the dishes. Whisk egg and water together in a small bowl; brush egg wash evenly over the puff pastry and poke a few holes in the top of each puff pastry. Bake at 400˚F for 15 minutes or until crust is golden brown. Makes 6 servings.

Nutrition: 707 calories, 30.2g fat, 5.2g fiber, 46.8g protein per serving
Cost: $2.40 per serving

Champagne Salmon with Swiss Chard Quinoa

I was super excited when my good friend Eva asked if we would like to use her family’s farm share while they visit her parents in Austria for the next few weeks. Eva is inspirational because she works full time as a pulmonary pediatrician and is raising the two...

Farfalle with Mushrooms and Goat Cheese Sauce

This pasta has Apolinaras’ name written all over it. I guess you could call him my muse from time to time. He looooves mushrooms and was so happy when I encouraged him to go ahead and put the pricey fresh shitakes in the grocery cart the other day. When I told him I...

Eggplant and Orzo Stuffed Red Peppers

Whenever I ask Apolinaras where he’d like to go out to dinner, he inevitability suggests his favorite BBQ place in Boston, Blue Ribbon. I have to admit that I’m a pretty big fan too, and actually just writing this post is making me crave some pulled pork and burnt...

Ancho Honey Chicken over Tropical Rice

My younger brother went through a phase when he was about five where he was obsessed with cantaloupe. I remember him easily downing four or five slices at a time, which I didn’t really understand since I was such a picky eater. In fact, I used to regularly make fun of...

Pecan and Coconut Crusted Tilapia over Tropical Rice

Before we left for Florida over the holidays, I tried to strategically plan our meals to use up every last bit of food of in the fridge. It’s always so sad having to throw out spoiled ingredients when you get back! We also scrubbed the fridge and rest of our apartment...

Sweet Chili Apricot Shrimp Skewers over Israeli Couscous

Apolinaras really enjoyed the last Israeli couscous dish I made. In fact, he said it would have been a 10 if I hadn’t included the spinach in the salad, haha. He snuck another box into our cart at Trader Joe’s recently, which I thought was pretty cute, and since he’s...

Caramelized Shallot and Crispy Sage Macaroni and Cheese

Happy Halloween! We’re currently putting the final touches on Apolinaras’ costume and I’m hoping I can convince him to let me post a few pictures, but I don’t want to push my luck too much. I’m very excited that I even convinced him to dress up - this is only his...

Moroccan Spiced Chicken

I’ve gotten in a little summer routine in the kitchen lately. We can’t get enough zucchini and yellow squash and every Sunday I end up sautéing a bunch of the veggies (7 yesterday!) in my huge wok to enjoy alongside some chicken and carby side dish of some kind....