Recipe: Southern Fried Chicken Pies with Creamy Herb Sauce

SOUTHERN FRIED CHICKEN PIES

FOR THE FILLING:
2 cups chopped or shredded cooked chicken
1 (7 ounce) can peas and carrots, drained
1 (10 3/4 ounce) can condensed cream of chicken soup with herbs, divided use
Oil for frying
FOR THE CRUST:*
2 cups self-rising flour**
2/3 cup buttermilk
1/3 cup shortening
FOR SERVING:
Creamy Herb Sauce (optional, recipe follows)

Combine chicken, peas and carrots, and 6 tablespoons of the soup. Mix well. Set aside. Reserve the remaining soup for the Creamy Herb Sauce.

Heat 3/4 inch of oil to 375 degrees in an electric skillet.

Put all crust ingredients in food processor and process until it forms a ball. Remove and divide into 12 portions. Form each portion in a ball a little larger than a golf ball. Roll each to a circle about 5 inches in diameter.

Put 1/4 cup of filling onto one half of the circle. Fold over and seal with a fork. Push the fork gently into each side of the pie to allow steam to escape during frying.

Fry the pies until golden brown on both sides, turning as needed. Drain well on paper towels. Serve with Creamy Herb Sauce.

CREAMY HERB SAUCE

Remaining/reserved condensed cream of chicken soup with herbs
1/4 cup mayonnaise
1/4 cup milk
1 tablespoon diced pimiento
1 tablespoon minced fresh parsley (or 1 to 1 1/2 teaspoon dried parsley)

Combine all ingredients in small saucepan and mix well. Heat thoroughly. This can be made ahead and heated just before serving, if desired.

*For those of you who really don't want to make the pastry, you can use the jumbo- size refrigerated biscuits, but don't expect them to be quite as good as the homemade buttermilk pastry.

**I have made the pastry for the fried pies using all-purpose flour and self-rising flour. As strange as it might seem, the pastry made with the self-rising flour is the best. You might wonder about it rising too much, but the dough is rather firm and
rolled thin, giving it just the right amount of rise. This is a crisp and flaky pastry.

VARIATIONS:
If you are in a creative mood, you might want to try other savory fillings. I think a fried pie made with cooked ground beef, onions, mushrooms and Southwest Style Pepper Jack soup would be a good choice.

Source: Prudence Hilburn to The Gadsden Times, September 10, 2008