Mini Crawfish Pies - Paula Deen

Typically not a fan of Paula's, but this recipe is outstanding. Note - I use 3 cups chicken stock and you can use shrimp if you can't find crawfish, but definitely use crawfish if you have it available. This is a special treat for us. I have not made the crust, I just use refrigerated crust and bake in a pie pan. You will need to bake until the crust is brown if using a large pie pan.

• Ready In: 1 hr
• Serves: 8

Ingredients

• 8  tablespoons butter, cubed and softened
• 1 (3 ounce) package cream cheese, softened
• 1  cup all-purpose flour
• 6  tablespoons butter, sliced
• 6  tablespoons all-purpose flour
• 1  large yellow onion, diced
• 4  stalks celery, diced
• 2  small carrots, diced
• 1  bunch scallion, diced
• 1  green pepper, diced
• 2  shallots, diced
• 1  lb  frozen crawfish tail, thawed
• 3  tablespoons  cajun seasoning
•  kosher  salt & freshly ground black pepper
• 3 -4  cups  chicken stock

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees F.
2. For the crust: In a large bowl, blend together the butter and cream cheese. Stir in flour and chill for 1 hour in the refrigerator. Separate dough; reserving 1/3 for pie tops, and using 2/3 for pie crust bottoms. To form bottom portions of dough, create dough balls approximately 1-inch in diameter and place into bottom of muffin tin cups, flattening to form crust bottoms. Bake crusts only until golden brown, about 20 minutes. *You can use any pie crust and simply follow remaining filling ingredients and make one large pie.
3. For the filling: In a saucepan, add butter and flour, stirring together over heat to create a roux. Cook until mixture is the color of peanut butter. Add all vegetables and saute until soft, about 5 to 10 minutes. Add crawfish, Cajun seasoning, and salt and pepper to taste. Saute mixture for 2 to 3 minutes. Add chicken stock and cook, stirring, until mixture boils and thickens. Spoon mixture into crusts. Top with circles of unbaked dough cut from the reserved 1/3 of original dough. Make a small slit in the top of the dough to allow steam to escape. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes or until golden brown. Serve while warm.