This shop has been compensated by Collective Bias, Inc. and its advertiser. All opinions are mine alone. #PotPiePlease #CollectiveBias. Here I’ll share my tips for achieving a perfect golden-brown pot pie crust and my Strawberry and Walnut Spinach Salad Recipe.
Pot pies are served warm and are perfect after a day or building snowmen or sledding. If there’s no snow, even hikes through the woods are best topped off with a piping hot and tummy-filling pot pie from Marie Callender’s.
I’m visiting with my Dad this week and when I see him I’m reminded of how we used to love eating Marie Callender’s Pot Pie together when I was a young girl. Especially during the cooler months, when I walked into the kitchen — filled with the aroma of soft all white-meat chicken, delicious gravy mixed with vegetables, and that golden, perfectly flaky crust — it made my mouth water. Even now as an adult, the scent of pot pie takes me back to my childhood.
Strawberry and Walnut Spinach Salad Recipe
Our family loves to pair our Family Sized Chicken Pot Pie meal with a fresh, crunchy and sweet salad. One of our favorites is my Strawberry and Walnut Spinach Salad. It also includes dried cranberries and a light raspberry vinaigrette dressing.
The rich greens of the romaine and spinach make it a “meaty” salad, with an adornment of sumptuous fruit and nut flavors.
Strawberry and Walnut Spinach Salad
Ingredients for Strawberry and Walnut Spinach Salad
- 8 – Strawberries – use the freshest you can find
- 1 Bag fresh Organic Spinach
- 1/2 Cup Chopped Walnuts
- 1/2 Dried Cranberries
- Light raspberry vinaigrette
Directions for Strawberry and Walnut Spinach Salad
Step 1 – Wash all produce throughly.
Step 2 – Use a few paper towels to dry the salad lettuce leaves – this creates a “crisper” salad.
Step 3 – Trim off the stems and leaves from the strawberries – slice each berry from top to bottom and then slice into halves.
Step 4 – Dump one bag of spinach into a salad bowl.
Step 5 – Add the strawberry pieces to the spinach leaves and toss gently to mix.
Step 6 – Gently sprinkle the cranberries on top.
Step 7 – Add 1/2 the walnuts and toss to mix. Add the other half at the end to leave plenty on top.
Step 8 – Salad dressing is completely optional – I like sweet flavors, so I find that a raspberry vinaigrette pairs well with this fruity nut-topped salad.
Now you may, or may not, have noticed how lovely my pot pie crust appears in these photos, and I’m happy to share with you my “crust-browning” tips. It’s such a simple step, but it makes a world of difference in how your crust will appear when you serve your Family Sized Chicken Pot Pie. Here I’ll share my tips, and my crunchy, fruity and delicious salad recipe.
Prepare your Pot Pie
To get the brown crust that you see in these photos on your pie at home, simply whip up a single egg white and use a basting brush to apply a thick layer of egg white to the outer crust of the pie before putting it into oven to bake – you will not use all of the egg white in this process.
Marie Callender’s recommends puncturing the outer shell of the pot pie with a fork to create venting holes in the surface of the pot pie. You need the pie to defrost for at least five minutes before doing this, so the outer shell of the pie can be punctured without cracking it. Once you’ve made the fork holes and the star-shape, you can baste the pot pie crust surface with the egg white.
Directions to Bake a Marie Callender’s Family Size Chicken Pot Pie
- Preheat oven to 375 degrees farenheight.
- Thaw the pot pie for five minutes at room temperature. Gently pierce center crust 3 to 4 times with a fork to vent.
- Cook on baking sheet in the center of the oven for 1 hour and 35 minutes or until crust is golden brown.
- Remove pot pie from oven on baking sheet – handle carefully as it will be hot.
- Check that the pot pie is cooked thoroughly – internal temperature needs to reach 165 degrees as measured by a food thermometer in several locations around the pie.
- If the edges of the pot pie start to brown excessively, simply cover the edges with a strip of aluminum foil to prevent over-browning during baking.
Where can you find Marie Callender’s Pot Pies?
The Marie Callender’s Pot Pie, fruits, nuts, and spinach salad bags can all be found at Walmart. I picked up our pot pie in the frozen foods section where you find Family Meals.
More Pot Pie Recipe Ideas
To learn more about delicious recipes you can pair or make with Marie Callender’s Pot Pies visit Marie Callender’s on Facebook at Marie Callender’s Meals. You can also find them on:
- Twitter: @ConAgraFoods
- Instagram: @ConAgraFoods
- Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/conagrafoods/
What’s your favorite way to enjoy pot pie?
What’s your favorite pairing for a pot pie meal? Do you enjoy a hearty or a lighter salad? Leave a comment below and join the conversation. I always love hearing from my readers.
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