Vegetable Pot Pie

Okay, by now everyone knows about the “cold spell” we’ve been having here in AZ. Actually, I believe it’s been a fairly standard winter for the valley, other than those few days of upper 20s and 30s temps at night, which killed a lot of our trees. Enough about the weather.

Since it was cold the other day, I decided to create a warm comforting meal for the family. I always used to love chicken or turkey pot pie, so I thought, I’ll make a veggie pot pie! This time I jotted down on a piece of paper all the ingredients I used. For the seasonings, I will have to guesstimate here in the recipe; I will have to remember next time to measure it all out in measuring spoons. We have two family members visiting as guests, and they are not vegetarian. Actually, I’m the only one in this household who is vegetarian, so the look on their faces was that of “okay, well, I guess we’ll just wait and see what’s set before us . . . .”

I took my time and the result was well worth it. Every member of the family went back for seconds. The Veganishta was laughing with joy and wonder. I just had to take a picture of the “empty” pan when we all were finished filling our bellies and warming up on a chilly evening. Here is the recipe. Veganishta Veggie-Power Pot Pie

5 small-med carrots sliced thinly at a 45 degree angle (just to add some flair and be different) 5 stalks of celery sliced semi-thinly

1/2 of a large onion chopped 1 large garlic clove–pressed 7 small potatoes sliced into 1/2-inch chunks 2 cups frozen peas 1/2 c. dry organic quinoa

1 cup gourmet variety mushrooms chopped (I have some from Costco–freeze dried that are good) 3 cups vegetable broth 2/3-1 cup So Delicious Coconut Milk (plain, unsweetened) 1/4 cup white flour 4 tbsp marjoram Sea salt to taste 1/8-1/4 tsp white pepper (to taste) 3 tbsp Earth Balance Butter 2-3 counts poured olive oil Filo dough sheets

1. Wash and cut all vegetables (even add the garlic) and set aside in large bowl; cook quinoa and set aside; pour hot vegetable broth over freeze-dried mushrooms and let sit for five minutes;

2. Saute for 5 minutes the vegetables in a mixture of the Earth Balance butter and olive oil in a large, deep frying pan or wok on medium-high heat

3. Drain (if needed) the quinoa and add it to the mushrooms and broth; simmer for a minute or two

4. Pour the mushroom quinoa broth into the vegetables in the big pan

5. Bring to a slight boil and then just simmer on a low heat;

6. Add the seasoning and stir occasionally; then add the flour by sprinkling a little at a time while stirring so as to thicken the sauce; add the coconut milk also. Add a little more flour if need to the consistency you like for the sauce and color.

7. Lightly oil with olive oil your pan and add several sheets of filo dough to the bottom and sides; pour in the veggie mixture

8. Layer several more sheets of filo dough over the mixture; then brush the top of all the filo with a combo of Earth Balance Butter and olive oil; place in 350 degree oven for 45 minutes or until the filo is golden brown.

Hope it turns out as well for you as it did for The Veganishta! Enjoy.