Quick Chicken Potpie

Yesterday was so good. I was not doing good, but instead of going out as we had planned, Jim went out the gate to the Asian restaurant and brought home takeout. My meal was kind of bland, but Max enjoyed it today.  The food is not great at this restaurant, but if you don’t feel all that good, it serves a purpose.
Tonight’s meal came from the latest Sunset magazine. It is in a section called Comfort Food Makeovers. This meal serves 6 and was very easy to assemble. It also allowed me to use up items from the freezer and the pantry. It is not long until packing for the move starts.
Ingredients:
3 T Vegetable oil, divided (I used EVOO)
1 C each chopped carrot, onion, celery and frozen peas (I had a leek for the onion)
¼ C flour
3 C milk, I used non fat
½ t kosher salt
¼ t pepper
3 cups cubed or shredded cooked chicken (I cooked up 4 chicken breasts and shredded)
2 t chopped fresh tarragon leaves (I used dry, 1/3 less)
4 C cubed sourdough bread and 3T butter (I used readymade croutons)
4 oz. shredded emmenthal cheese (I used 4 oz of mystery cheese in the refrigerator)
Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Heat 2 T oil in a 4 qt. pot over medium heat. Add carrot, onion and celery and cook, stirring often until softened, about 5 minutes. Transfer to a bowl and add peas. Set aside.
2. Add remaining 1T oil to pot and add flour whisk until dry and crumbly about 30 seconds. Pour in milk ¼ C at a time, whisking well after each addition until smooth and creamy. Add reserved vegetables, chicken salt and pepper. Stir gently to combine. Spoon mixture into a 2 ½ qt. gratin dish. Sprinkle with tarragon.
3. I skipped this step as I used up readymade croutons. (Mix bread and butter together in a large bowl, tossing well to coat.) Top chicken mixture with bread cubes and sprinkle with cheese. Bake until browned and starting to bubble about 25 minutes.
We have two servings left, so it really will serve 6 normal people. I thought this was the best chicken pot pie I’ve ever had. It was light and filling at the same time. It was great to lose the pie crust. Jim served an Italian white that we bought at a wine dinner at the club called Teruzzi & Puthod. I really enjoyed it. It comes from Tuscany and the grape was not listed on the bottle. It was steely with a hint of pineapple.