Easy Beef or Venison Pot Pie {Using Pillsbury Pet-Ritz Crust}

 Beef or Venison Pot Pies, a casserole under a crust my family describes it.  Long ago, the name Pot Pie came from cooking the filling in a pot on the stove and then pouring it into a crust to bake.

Pot pies scream comfort food at best!!  We are huge fans of pot pies around our house. You can make some of the best pot pies with leftovers.  One way to transform leftovers into pure goodness.

The most popular pot pie you hear of is the Chicken Pot Pie, which is a favorite around our house too.  Every deer season I am looking for new recipes using venison, soup being one of our favorites.  

After making a big pot of Venison Vegetable Soup, I thought how easy it would be to scoop about 2 cups of it out, add some cornstarch to make a creamy thickening and then pour into a crust for Venison Pot Pie.  Genius, I know.  To make it even easier, I used two frozen pie crust that I thawed.  My favorite brand is Pillsbury Pet-Ritz pie crust.  They have a perfect balance of sugar in them that works great with a savory pie.  I know you are thinking, "how did I get a top crust?"  I used one for the bottom crust and inverted the other one for the top crust.  Genius again, giggles.  They came out rustic looking, just what I was looking for and the taste was incredibly flavorful.  

Beef or Venison Pot Pie (makes 2 pot pies)
{by CookingwithK.net}

Ingredients:

• 2 cups beef or venison vegetable soup with juice/broth, homemade or canned
• 1-2 tablespoons cornstarch (I recommend 1 tablespoon, but if you like your filling thicker use 2 tablespoons)
• 1 cup water
• 2 packages 9" frozen pie crust, thawed (4 pie crust in all) *I use the deep dish Pillsbury Pet-Ritz pie crust
• 1/2 cup butter, divided

Directions:
Preheat oven 375 degrees F.  Mix cornstarch and water until creamy; set aside.  In a medium saucepan, add venison vegetable soup and a 1/4 cup butter;  heat until hot and simmering.

Add cornstarch slurry, stirring constantly.  Take off heat.  Stir until all the slurry is incorporated and the filling is thickened.

Pour soup filling into bottom of 1 pie crust.  Invert crust of 1 pie crust over the filled ones.  Repeat the process for the next pot pie.   Press edges to seal.  Cut a slit in the top to let steam out while cooking

Bake for 30-45 minutes or until crust is brown and filling is bubbly.  Remove from oven and rub with slices of butter over the crust.  Cool 15 minutes before serving.

Cook's Note:  Beef may be substituted for venison and made the exact same way.

This recipe can be seen at these linky parties here!  Also, this recipe and others can be seen at Cedar Hill Farmhouse, Weekend Potluck, Savy Southern Style, Have a Daily Cup of Mrs. Olson, Be Inspired,