These days I am cooking for my daughter and son-in-law. Last night I made a Vegetable Pot Pie and my daughter asked: “How did you create this”? In her honor, I am starting this new series with recipes of what I cook for them during the next couple of months. Now, they’re plant based and I prefer to eat that way too. So whether or not you are, you are going to see how to really turn vegetables into meals. The kinds of things I make are both meals and side dishes. So these are great ideas for “Meatless Monday”.
Today’s blog is: Create Series – Vegetable Pot Pie.
One of the things we need during covid is comfort food that won’t pack on the pounds. When you skip on chicken, butter, milk and cream – the things that are traditionally used in a pot pie, you skip on all those calories. So let’s get started!
Here’s a crust for the bottom and top layers. Crust is just flour and water. You can google vegan crust if you like or just buy one from the store and roll it out. Once you grease your pan (I used Earth Balance, but you can use any spray oil), roll out your crust thin and layer it into the bottom. You’re not going to see this, so use whatever pieces don’t necessarily look great.
Next you are going to create a béchamel sauce. Do you know what a roux is? Think New Orleans and Gumbo. It all starts with a ‘paste’ of sorts that evolves into a creamy base. This base can be used to make Pot Pies or even Mac n Cheese.
So take some flour and add fat. In this case I used Earth Balance and Grapeseed oil for my fat. Put enough fat into the pan to absorb the flour. It’s ok if you start with a half a cup and expand as you go by adding more flour or fat, whatever you need, if you realize there isn’t enough for the pan you want to fill. After making this a couple of times, you will get a ‘feel’ for how much roux you need. But it’s about a cup.
Once the roux is a thick paste, add a milk substitute. I use Oat Milk, at first, then added later Imagine’s boxed Potato Leek Soup. Next time, I think I’ll go with 100% Potato Leek soup because the Oat Milk adds a sweetness that isn’t necessary for the flavor profile. Although if you make it really spicy, then you can get away with oat milk. Sweet and Spicy creates a good balance.
Now, I need to flavor it: My go to’s are a pinch of saffron, which gives it some color and flavor, smoked paprika, (more color and flavor), ancho chili powder and a little sprinkle of red chili flakes, celery salt, garlic powder and at the very end (and I mean after it has been cooking a while) add a squeeze or two of lemon. You can adjust the amounts to taste.
I’m always adding spices, then tasting, to see what else I might have to add, to get the flavor I want. You know what a Pot Pie tastes like. Strive for that flavor! Experiment! If you like a particular spice, use it! And even if you use a hot spice, just use a pinch or two, and understand that it layers flavor without necessarily being hot. Of course, the more you add, the hotter it gets. And we all know that for most people ‘spice’ is good for your heart and health. But there are people who steer away from it, so make it for the people who will be eating it!
So your béchamel cooks low and slow. Make sure every so often you stir with a wooden spoon and scrape the bottom of the pan so nothing sticks. And if after 10 or 15 minutes, if it hasn’t thickened up, sprinkle in (and smash up against the side of your pan) a teaspoon of corn starch. That always does the trick for thickening anything up!
Moving onto vegetables: In a separate pan, cook chopped onions (one medium onion). When you can look through them, (they call that translucent), add 2 small chopped russet potatoes. It should take about 10 minutes for each ingredient. And wait until almost the end to do a sprinkling of salt, because salt draws the water out of vegetables.
It’s important to cut all vegetables the same size so it cooks evenly. Then, here’s the easy part: take a half bag of the small mixed frozen vegetables and dump them in. Put a top on, low and slow maybe another 15 minutes. Now the flavors are married!
Next, dump the veggie pot into the béchamel. Stir and add to your pan with the crust on the bottom.
Layer more ‘crust’ onto the top. Insert into a pre-heated 350 degree oven until the top crust looks brown or cooked. The lighting on this picture doesn’t do it justice. But I can tell you it looked bubbly and delicious! Don’t forget to let sit 10 minutes, then slice up and enjoy!
Healthy Happy Eating,
