At the beginning of September I posted about my adventure making five freezer meals for my family in one weekend spending under $120 to do it here. I doubled the recipe to feed two families and ended up with enough food for three families! No complaints though, because lots of food means left-overs and left over night means we play “restaurant” and my kids can pick what they would like to eat. No cooking for me and kids get to pick their dinner: it’s a win-win scenario! 
All five recipes were created to feed a large family or fill (in the very least) a 9×13 pan. Doubling these recipes means you’ll have an extra pan of food to put in the freezer for later or pan of food to give to a neighbor. The five meals I created were: Chicken Pot Pie, Café Rio Burritos, Chicken Enchiladas, Lasagna and lastly, Broccoli Tuna Casserole. The best part about this series is not only do we make this process super simple for any of you to follow by providing a shopping list (HERE) but all of these recipes have been tried and tested by three different families, with different taste buds and of course- eaten and enjoyed by kids. Yippee! To start off this five part-freezer-meal series, we’ll start with something warm since winter (like it or not) is around the corner…
The leaves are change colors in the mountains. The cool weather in the morning and evening, wearing fall sweaters and of course those fashionable winter boots! Cooler weather, jackets and warm blankets means warm dinners are a must. This Chicken Pot Pie recipe is sure to bring a smile to your face and warmth in your belly.
| Prep Time | 30 Minutes |
| Cook Time | 35-40 Minutes |
| Passive Time | 15 Standing |
| Servings |
8 servings each
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- 2 Cups Hashbrowns
- 1 12 ounce Frozen Mixed Veggies
- 1 Cup Butter cubed
- 2/3 Medium onion chopped
- 1 Cup All- Purpose- Flour
- 13/4 tsp salt
- 1 tsp Thyme
- 3/4 tsp Pepper
- 3 Cups Chicken Broth
- 1 1/2 Cup Milk
- 4 Cups Chicken cooked and cubed
- 2 Pkgs Refrigerated Pie Pastry
Ingredients
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- Preheat oven to 425. In a large skillet, heat butter over medium high-heat. Add onion; cook and stir until tender. Stir in flour and seasonings until blended. Gradually stir in broth and milk. Bring to boil, stirring constantly, cook and stir for 2 minutes or until thickened. Remove from heat and allow to cool.
- Combine chicken, frozen hasbrowns and frozen veggies in a large bowl. Pour the liquid over the top and stir together. Season to taste.
- Unroll a pastry sheet into each of two 9-inch pie plates; trim pastry even with rims. Add chicken mixture. Unroll remaining pastry; place over filling. Trim, seal and flute edges. Cut slits in top. Lightly place tin foil on top to protect the crust from browning too quickly.
- Bake 30-35-minutes, remove foil and cook for an additional 5-10 minutes or until crust is lightly browned. Let stand 15 minutes before cutting.
- ***Instructions for cooking the frozen meal-- Remove frozen casserole from freezer 30 minutes before baking (do not thaw). Preheat oven to 425, loosely cover pie with foil. Bake 30 minutes. Reduce oven settings to 350 and bake 70-80 minutes longer or until the crust is golden brown. Enjoy!
Something to note– if you happen to have a little person in the kitchen with you while you are trying to cook… plan on the prep time to take twice as long. Tell me I’m not the only one that cooks things while kids nap in hopes of getting dinner on the table at a decent hour! 
Happy cooking!
Morgan
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