It's been really cold and rainy this last week. We had a really huge wind storm the other day. I was in the house and listened as branches hit the house. It was really loud. Don't think I've worried about a storm for a long time. It was a little scary. The lights flickered a few times, but nothing major happened.
I thought about how grateful I am to be home with electricity and my slippers. I thought, an old fashioned pot pie sounded good for a such a cold rainy day. I didn't need to go anywhere, I have some puff pastry in the freezer and it can be made with just about any veggies on hand. I had some basics on hand, but any veggies added to this would make a great filling: broccoli, mushrooms, yams, and leeks.
So, I took a tour through my fridge to see what I had on hand. I usually always have some celery, onions, carrots, as those are staples on my shopping list. I have some peas in the freezer. At first I thought I'd make it with just veggies as I didn't have any extra firm tofu or tempeh. What I did have was some seitan roast. It's called Be'IF and it's a seitan roast made in Portland, OR, The Homegrown Smokehouse and Deli.
Check it out if you're in Portland. There are a variety of "Schmeat's" made a the Smokehouse. There's quite a variety to choose from as well as a the same great menu as the food truck on Mississppi. Homegrown Smoker BBQ.
This is how it happened...
Vegetable Pot Pie with Be'If
* 2 cups diced seitan, optional - If you don't have this, that's OK
* 6 cups veggie stock or water (I used low sodium vegetable broth)
* 1 cup yellow onion, diced
* 1 cup carrots, peeled and diced
* 1 cup Crimini mushrooms, quartered
* 1 cup diced potatoes
* 1 cup green peas
* 3/4 tsp thyme, minced
* 3/4 tsp sage, minced
* 3/4 tsp sea salt
* 3/4 tsp fresh ground black pepper
* 1 tbsp nutritional yeast flakes
* 1 tbsp tamari soy sauce
* 1/3 cup flour, (wheat or spelt works well)
* 1/3 cup vegan margarine such as Earth Balance
* 1 puff pastry sheet rolled out to by 12x10 inches
Preparation:
Preheat oven to 375º.
To make a roux, melt the vegan margarine in a saute pan, add flour and whisk constantly until light brown in color. Cool and set aside.
In a large pot or skillet, cook onions for 3 minutes stirring constantly and adding veggie stock 2 TB at a time time when onions begin to stick. Add carrots, sage, thyme, salt and pepper. Continue to cook for 5 minutes. Add stock, potatoes, and mushrooms, and simmer for 8-10 minutes, until potatoes are tender. Whisk in nutritional yeast flakes, peas, tamari, and diced seitan, if using.
Add the roux a bit at a time and continue to cook as sauce begins to thicken. Once mixture is cool, pour into individual ramekins, glass pie pan or small casserole dish. Cover mixture with puff pastry (be sure to leave a small excess of pastry for folding and fluting of the edge) and seal edges. Cut small slits in the top of crust.
Bake at 375º until crust is golden brown and filling mixture is bubbling. Enjoy
