Recipes

Thursday, August 2, 2012

Willow Tree Farm: Chicken Pie!

For some reason, chicken pot pies are never something I think of making, or even buying for that matter.   I don't know why though, they are the epitome of comfort food, and it let's you have "pie" for dinner!

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Recently, the nice people at Willow Tree Farm asked if I'd like to try out their chicken pot pies to review, and I gladly accepted.  Willow Tree is a local family owned and operated company out of Attleboro, MA specializing in chicken...especially chicken pies and chicken salad.

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In most grocery stores around New England you can find their chicken pies in the freezer section and their chicken salad at the deli.

I selected their Chicken Pie with vegetables which had carrots, peas, and green beans.

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With the heat we've been experiencing around here this summer, I was holding out for a "cooler" day to turn the oven on for this meal.  My wish finally came true this past Sunday when we had a nice day in the 70's ;)

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Preparation is simple, place the pie on a baking sheet and bake for 1hr 15min.  I took the suggestion on the box to brush the crust with milk first to give it a nice golden brown finish.

Before we knew it, dinner was ready.  We had simple side salads to go with our meal.  The pie technically has 3 servings but if it's your main course I would say it feeds 2...we had no problem eating the whole thing.

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Unlike some chicken pot pies this one only has a top crust which I really like!  Most of the time I feel like the bottom crust is just a filler and gets soggy anyways...this also keeps the calories down a bit.

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I really enjoyed the big hunks of white meat, and the filling was nice and salty...in a good way, at least I thought so.  The crust was crisp and golden brown..good, but not as tender and flaky as it could of been.

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I'd love to see them make a pie with just real butter and/or olive oil, instead of the shortening and soy or palm oils, but that would be my only gripe.

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This would be a perfect meal for a brisk fall or winter day when you want something homemade but don't have the time.  Throw one of these pies in the oven, go do your other tasks around the house, and dinner's ready!

If you live in the area you can also check the Willow Tree Farm retail store  in Attleboro where they that pies, chicken salad and so much more!  I love their seafood salad and wish I could eat it more often, and they also make an awesome buffalo chicken dip which I ate copious amounts of at a friends house on Superbowl Sunday :)

They also have fresh turkeys you can order for the holidays...my "house Thanksgiving" 2 years ago used a Willow Tree bird and it was delicious.

Big thanks to Willow Tree Farm for providing me with the chicken pie!

Disclaimer: I received a coupon for a free chicken pie, but all opinions are always my own.

Do you rely on frozen meals sometimes??  As much as I love cooking everything homemade as often as I can…I also have to be realistic in that I keep my schedule pretty jam packed which leaves very little time for dinner some nights.  However, when I do by frozen foods I always makes sure the ingredient list is good and not filled with crap or chemicals :) 

10 comments:

  1. We all need a super easy go to meal! This looks perfect. I really like that the crust is only on top.  I wish they sold outside of NE. I rarely rely on frozen meals, but I actually had one tonight! I had an Amy's light and lean. While I usually adore Amy's products...this one was TERRIBLE :(

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  2. Wow I haven't had one of these in forever, they are delicious!  We always ate Willow Tree Chicken pot pies as kids, mostly whenever my mom was working and it was dad's turn to cook.    

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  3. I love how there's just a top crust too. I tried one of these with Red Bliss potatoes and really enjoyed it. Definitely great for a quick meal!

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  4. I grew up eating a lot of Willow Tree pies! And I agree with you 100% on the frozen foods - they're handy, but can be filled with a lot of illegible ingredients. There are definitely some "good" ones, though!

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  5. Where are you based? They are now in NY, NJ, CT and more to come. You can also have them shipped (does require a shipping fee).

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  6. Hi Stephanie - Would you like to be interviewed for the Willow Tree blog?

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  7. Hi Michelle,

    Would you like to write a Willow Tree review, or be interviewed for their blog?

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  8. I saw another Boston blogger write about these pies a while ago and I'm definitely intrigued. I grew up on Mrs. Budd's (that makes it sound like my parents fed them to us every night! Haha they were really our special "treat" when we had a babysitter) and am always tempted to buy them, but they're sooo bad for me. I might have to try Willow Tree! I'm also excited that I just moved and Harrow's Chicken Pies is close by! 

    Sues

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  9.  Hey Kathy! I live in SC

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  10. I grew up on Willow Tree Pies, and then my kids fell in love with them too. But 7 years ago we moved to NC and were really sad to find we couldn't buy them here. Anyways, it became a prerequisite for family visiting from the North to bring us a Willow Tree Pie (Tab too, but that's another story!) or when we go North, we bring some home. I was so happy to find today their online store!!! Now I can stock up and have them whenever we like!

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