Rachael Ray's Buffalo Chicken Pot Pie

This recipe is from the 9/10/07 episode of the Rachael Ray Show. I love spicy food, so I DOUBLED the amount of hot sauce to 1/2 cup! It is a delicious recipe!

• Ready In: 1 hr
• Serves: 6

Ingredients

• 5  tablespoons extra virgin olive oil, divided
• 3  boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut into bite sized pieces
• 1  large onion, chopped into bite sized pieces
• 2  carrots, peeled and chopped into bite sized pieces
• 3  stalks celery, chopped into bite sized pieces
• 2  garlic cloves, grated

• SAUCE

• 4  tablespoons butter
• 4  tablespoons flour
• 2 1⁄2 cups  chicken stock
• 1⁄4 cup  hot sauce (or more for more kick!)

• TOPPING

• 17  ounces  boxed  cornbread mix (like 2 boxes of Jiffy mix)
• 2⁄3 cup milk
• 2  eggs
• 1  cup blue cheese, crumbled

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit.
2. Heat 2 tablespoons of EVOO (extra virgin olive oil) in a large skillet over medium-high heat.
3. Add the chopped chicken chunks and sauté them on both sides until golden brown.
4. Remove chicken chunks from skillet and reserve on a plate.
5. Add another 2 tablespoons of EVOO, onion, carrot, celery and garlic to the same skillet and cook, stirring occasionally, until the vegetables are tender, 5 to 6 minutes.
6. While the veggies are cooking start the sauce. In a medium-size sauce pan, melt the butter over medium-high heat; stir in the flour and cook until light brown, about 1 minute.
7. Whisk the chicken stock and hot sauce into the butter/flour mixture and bring it to a boil.
8. Simmer the gravy until thickened, 2 or 3 minutes.
9. Return the reserved chicken chunks to the skillet with the cooked vegetables.
10. Add the gravy, stirring to combine.
11. Transfer everything to a 9x11" casserole dish and set aside while you prepare the topping.
12. TOPPING:
13. In a medium-size mixing bowl, prepare the cornbread according to package directions.
14. Stir the blue cheese crumbles into the cornbread mixture and drop spoonfuls of the batter onto the top of the casserole, covering it completely.
15. Bake the pot pie until the cornbread is baked through and the filling is hot, 20 to 30 minutes.