Cornbread Waffles topped with Creamy Chicken and Vegetables

I love to make chicken pot pies. They are one of my son's favorites, but this time instead of the pie crust variety, I went outside the pie plate so to speak. The crunchy outside of the cornbread is the perfect part for me, so I thought...why not cook the cornbread in a waffle iron and have crunchiness all around? It worked deliciously well. Here we go:

Cornbread Batter:

4 cups self-rising cornmeal mix

2 1/2 cup buttermilk

3 T. melted bacon grease

Mix well and heat waffle iron.  Pretend you're making sweet waffles.  (insert smile)  As each batch is cooked, place on baking sheet and keep warm in the oven while the others cook.

Creamy Chicken and Vegetables:

4 - 6 cups water

1 T. chicken base

1 T. freshly ground black pepper

a few sprigs of thyme

4 boneless/skinless chicken breasts

1 can cream of chicken soup with herbs

8 oz. sour cream

8 oz. frozen mixed vegetables

1 T. Worcestershire sauce

Bring water, chicken base, pepper to a boil. Add chicken breasts and thyme. Lower heat and poach chicken until cooked through. Remove chicken to a plate and when cooled, shred into large pieces.

Add mixed vegetables to poaching water and cook for 3 - 4 minutes. Drain and reserve 1/2 cup of the liquid. Add the soup, sour cream, chicken, vegetables, poaching liquid and Worcestershire back into the pot and let cook for 10 - 12 minutes over low heat. If the mixture is too thin, mix a few spoonfuls of cornstarch into a few spoonfuls of cool water and add to the simmering liquid. It should thicken up nicely.

Spoon over cooked waffles and garnish with a fresh thyme sprig. Sit back and enjoy the happy smiles of your diners and accept compliments graciously.