There are plenty of naturally vegan dishes that don’t require overhauling a pantry or employing culinary sleight of hand to mimic meat or dairy. Take, for example, this veggie pot pie from the new “Reducetarian Cookbook: 125 Easy, Healthy, and Delicious Plant-Based Recipes for Omnivores, Vegans, and Everyone In-Between (Center Press/Hachette, $22).
“I grew up with Boston Market. I ate chicken pot pie all the time,” says the book’s editor and Reducetarian Foundation president Brian Kateman. Here, coconut oil pastry covers a rich filling of potatoes, carrots, corn and peas. Add sautéed mushrooms to the mixture for added meaty appeal.
The Reducetarian’s Veggie Potpie
Serves 4-6
Vegan pie pastry:
1½ cups unbleached all-purpose flour, plus more for rolling
1 teaspoon granulated sugar
½ teaspoon sea salt
½ cup extra-virgin coconut oil, chilled
4 to 5 tablespoons unflavored, unsweetened almond milk, chilled
Directions:
- Chill rolling pin and pastry cloth (or lint-free kitchen towel) in the refrigerator until ready to roll out the pastry.
- Combine flour, sugar and salt in a large bowl. Add oil and use a pastry cutter or two knives to cut the oil into the flour; the mixture should look like rolled oats. Cut, don’t mash, the oil into the flour.
- Sprinkle 2 tablespoons of milk over the mixture and blend using a fork. Add more milk, 1 tablespoon at a time and blend until the mixture comes together to form a soft ball. Don’t overmix or knead the dough. Wrap the dough in plastic and chill for 12 to 15 minutes in the refrigerator.
- Spread chilled pastry cloth over your workspace and sprinkle lightly with flour. Position chilled dough in the center of the cloth and pat it into a square or circle using your hands. Roll the dough out evenly into a 12-inch circle or 10 by 12-inch rectangle that is ¼ inch thick.
Filling:
2 tablespoons extra-virgin avocado oil
1 medium onion, chopped
½ red bell pepper, chopped
1 clove garlic, chopped
1 tablespoon Italian herb blend (or 1½ teaspoons dried rosemary, ¾ teaspoon each of dried oregano and thyme, and a pinch of rubbed sage)
¼ cup unflavored, unsweetened nondairy milk
2 tablespoons cornstarch
2 cups vegetable broth
2 cups chopped fresh or frozen mixed vegetables, such as carrots, potatoes, peas, corn or Brussels sprouts
Directions:
- Heat oven to 425 degrees. Lightly oil 4 large or 6 medium-size ramekins or an 8 by 8-inch baking dish and place on a rimmed baking sheet.
- In a saucepan set over medium-high heat, heat the avocado oil. Add onions and peppesr and cook, stirring frequently, for 5 minute. Add garlic and herb blend and cook, stirring frequently for 3 minutes. Set aside.
- In a small bowl, whisk the milk and cornstarch into a smooth paste.
- Add broth to a saucepan and bring to a boil. Stir in cornstarch paste, reduce heat and simmer, stirring constantly, for about 10 minutes, or until liquid has thickened. Add vegetables and simmer until tender when pierced with a knife tip; 10 minutes for fresh vegetables, 5 to 6 minutes for frozen.
- Meanwhile, cut out pastry rounds slightly smaller than the size of the ramekins (or an 8 by 8-inch square).
- Ladle vegetables and sauce into ramekins or baking dish and top with pastry. Bake for 15 minutes or until pastry is browned and the filling is hot through and bubbling. Let stand for 5 minutes before serving.
—From “The Reducetarian Cookbook,” edited by Brian Kateman with recipes by Pat Crocker (Center Street, Hachette, 2018)