More Noodling with Recipes

It's got to be the weather. While it's all bright and sunny outside, but it's freezing (inside and out). Well, for us Southern Californians. Seriously. Night before last we had frost warnings. I actually had to turn the heat up from 61F (16.11C) to 65F (18.33C) and periodically stand over the floor vent of the gravity furnace, soaking up the warmth. I keep telling myself to remember how cold I am now, for when summer hits us with some 100 F+ (37.77 C) days! So, whether it's the cold or the fact it still seems like winter (mind you, I'm not complaining), I can't seem to stop playing with and investigating variations on recipes for comfort food, warm comfort food. Thus, I find myself back to my Chicken Pot Pie recipe. Made it last night and changed things up a bit.

Instead of Trader Joe's frozen assorted veggies (corn, peas and carrots) which tasted like frozen, I tried Albertson's. However, since I didn't have my glasses on when I reached in the frozen section and grabbed a bag, I missed the item following "Peas, Carrots, Corn". The mix had lima beans too!

Lima beans in pod and shelled

Waldorf Salad, Image from The Food Network

While I love vegetables and salads, if I haven't said this before, I hate lima beans (also called butter beans in the South) and Waldorf Salad. I'm borderline on kidney beans. All other beans are fine in fact I love black beans with some cilantro and tomato. I thawed the unopened package in a bowl of tepid water, changing the water twice. Then dumped the contents into a colander, rinsing and draining several times under running water to get rid of the "frozen" taste, then picked out all the lima beans. While shopping, I was lucky enough to find a reasonably decent ear of white sweet corn. Cut the kernals off the cob and added them to the freshly drained veggies.

I assembled it as I had in the past but did not put the biscuits on it immediately. Put it in a preheated oven at 385F (196.11 C) for 10 minutes. Removed it from the oven. The top of the mixture was just starting to brown a bit and was slightly bubbly. I then placed the Pillsbury Grands biscuits on top without any stretching out or thinner and placed the pan back in the oven at 370F (187.77 C) for 10 more minutes. At this point the biscuits were turning a nice golden brown, so I put it back for 5-8 minutes and then when browned enough, turned the oven off and let sit for 5 minutes. I removed the pan from the oven and let it sit for 5 more minutes so the sauce could solidify. Scooped a serving out of the pan with a bisquit on top. It was sooo good! By letting the mixture warm up first I eliminated the gummy or unbaked bottom on the biscuit which was what happened last time. The ear of  corn was just the right amount of fresh taste to make it all seem like it was right out of the garden!

I reheated it the next night (foil covered) in a 280F (C) oven for 20 - 25 minutes or until fully heated. It was just as good as the previous night. Yumm!

Actually, I think part of it is that in the recesses of my mind I remember how the oven doesn't get turned on all summer long, from June until November. One has to enjoy to the fullest what each season has to offer and this season it's the oven!