Cheesy Chicken And Bacon Recipe

Make pastry dough

Whisk together flour, salt, and sugar in a large bowl. Add cold cubed butter and shortening. Using a pastry cutter or your fingers, cut the fats into the flour until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs with pea-sized pieces of butter remaining.

Drizzle ice water a tablespoon at a time and gently mix with a fork until the dough just comes together. You should be able to press a small handful and have it hold; avoid overworking. Form into two flat discs, wrap in plastic, and chill at least 30 minutes (or up to 2 days).

When ready to bake, preheat oven to 400°F (205°C). Line a baking sheet with parchment.

Beat the egg with the cold milk and set aside for egg wash.

Prepare the cheese filling

In a medium bowl, beat the softened cream cheese until smooth. Stir in sour cream until combined. Fold in grated cheddar, parsley, chives, lemon zest, salt, and black pepper. Adjust seasoning to taste. Chill until needed.

Cook bacon and chicken

Heat a large skillet over medium heat. Add bacon slices and cook until crisp, about 6-8 minutes, turning as needed. Remove bacon to paper towels, reserve 1 tablespoon of bacon fat in the skillet and discard excess. When cool, chop bacon into small pieces.

Season diced chicken with 1/2 tsp salt and 1/2 tsp pepper. Add 1 tablespoon olive oil to the skillet with reserved bacon fat over medium-high heat. Add diced chicken and cook, stirring occasionally, until just cooked through and lightly browned, about 5-7 minutes. Remove chicken to a bowl and set aside.

Reduce heat to medium, add the finely diced onion to the skillet and a pinch of salt. Sauté until translucent, 4-5 minutes. Add minced garlic and cook 30 seconds more until fragrant. Return cooked chicken and chopped bacon to the skillet and stir to combine.

Make a cornstarch slurry by stirring cornstarch into 1 tablespoon cold water. Sprinkle the slurry into the skillet and stir; this will bind the filling slightly as it cools. Stir in frozen peas (if using), chopped parsley, chives, remaining 1/2 tsp salt and 1/2 tsp pepper. Remove from heat and let cool 10 minutes.

Fold 1 cup of the prepared creamy herbed cheese into the cooled chicken and bacon mixture until evenly distributed. Taste and adjust seasoning; the mixture should be thick and scoopable.

On a lightly floured surface, roll each chilled dough disk into a 9-10 inch circle about 1/8" thick. Cut into four equal rounds if making smaller individual pasties or keep whole for two large pasties.

Place about 3/4 to 1 cup of filling (adjust by size) in the center of each dough round, leaving a 1" border. Brush the edge with egg wash. Fold the dough over the filling to form a half-moon and press edges to seal. Crimp the edge with a fork or pleat for a traditional pasty seal. Make 2 small slits on top to vent steam.

Place assembled pasties on the prepared baking sheet. Brush tops with egg wash for a glossy golden finish.

Bake in the preheated 400°F (205°C) oven for 25-30 minutes for small/individual pasties or 35-40 minutes for large pasties, until crust is deep golden and filling is bubbling. If the edges are browning too quickly, tent loosely with foil.

Remove from oven and let rest on a rack 10 minutes before serving to allow filling to set. Serve warm.