Chickpea Pot Pie and the Perils of Recipe Creation

I have a hard time creating original, or even semi-original, recipes.  My Evernote account is now up to 2,334 notes, almost all of them recipes and every day new and delicious sounding ideas fill my Google Reader.  I love to cook, but I don’t like to waste food, so I’d rather make someone else’s great idea than try to invent one of my own.  Nevertheless, I really do want to increase the amount of original recipes on Relishments so I recently tried creating my own variation of chickpea pot pie.

My variation was surprisingly successful for a first try.  I was pleasantly surprised with myself and scheduled a future recreation of the pie and post sharing the recipe.  And then I lost the recipe.

I looked high and low—in the binder I keep my blogging stuff in, in the pile of paper recipes I’ve recently made but not gotten around to filing yet, in the papers on my desk.  My chickpea pot pie recipe was nowhere to be found.  I did the best I could to rewrite it, but decided to put if off until I was less annoyed with myself.

And then I found it, being used as a bookmark in How to Cook Everything Vegetarian.  Why wasn’t that the first place I looked?  So I made it again last night with a few more minor tweaks, and now I share it with you.  This meat-free pot pie is a mixture of vegetables, beans and sauce in a very flaky crust.  Though it’s a bit more involved than some of my recipes, chickpea pot pie is hearty, filling and perfect for this not-quite-warm-out-yet weather.

From now on, all recipes in development are going into my blogging binder.  Remind me of that next time I can’t find one.

Chickpea Pot Pie

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Prep Time 1 hr 30 mins

Cook Time 25 mins

Servings 6 servings

Ingredients

  

Crust (adapted from Betty Crocker)

• This recipe uses a top and bottom crust. You will use half of each of the crust ingredients for each part.
• 2/3 cup whole wheat flour divided
• 1 and 1/3 cup all purpose flour divided
• 1/2 teaspoon salt divided
• 2/3 cup plus 2 tablespoons shortening divided
• 8-10 tablespoons water divided

Filling

• 3 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 large shallot chopped (about ¾ cup)
• 1 carrot diced
• 8 ounces potatoes diced
• 1 cup cooked chickpeas
• 2 cups vegetable broth
• 1 tablespoon nutritional yeast
• 1 tablespoon soy sauce
• 1 teaspoon dried sage
• 1 teaspoon dried thyme
• 1 teaspoon dried parsley
• 3 tablespoons all-purpose flour

Instructions

 

Make the crust:(This pot pie has 2 crusts, a top and a bottom. I find it easiest to make them one at a time, as outlined below.)

• Combine 1/3 cup whole wheat, 2/3 cup all purpose flour and 1/4 teaspoon salt in a bowl. Add 1/3 cup plus 1 tablespoon shortening and combine using a pastry cutter or 2 knives in opposite directions. You should end up a small dough particles, about the size of peas
• Sprinkle in 4-5 tablespoons of water, one tablespoon at a time, and stir to combine. Stop adding water when the dough forms a ball.
• Shape the crust dough into a ball, wrap in plastic wrap and place in the fridge for 45 minutes.
• Return to the first step and repeat for the other crust.

Make the filling

• Meanwhile, chop your vegetables, if you haven't already, and begin preparing your filling. If your vegetables are already diced, you can begin the filling after the crust has been in the fridge for about 20 minutes.
• Preheat the oven to 400° F.
• In a deep skillet, heat 1 tablespoon of olive oil over medium heat.
• Add the diced shallot, potatoes and carrots and cook for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally.
• Add 1 cup chickpeas and mix with the vegetables. Turn the heat up to medium-high.
• Add the broth, nutritional yeast, soy sauce, sage, thyme and parsley to the skillet and stir to combine.
• Sprinkle in the flour one tablespoon at a time and mix completely to remove lumps before adding more flour.
• Cook for 10 minutes, allowing the filling to come to a simmer, stirring occasionally and letting the sauce thicken. Taste and adjust seasonings if necessary.
• Remove the filling from the heat.

Assemble the pie

• Remove one batch of dough from the fridge and roll it out on lightly floured surface so that it will fit a 9” pie pan. Press the dough into the bottom of the pan and up the sides. If the dough doesn't roll out perfectly, reshape it as needed in the pan by removing excess and adding it where it's needed. It's okay to have a rustic crust.
• Pour the filling into the bottom crust and spread it out evenly.
  
• Remove the second batch of dough from the fridge, roll out and place on top of the crust. Again, rearrange the dough so that it fully covers. Brush the top with olive oil.
• Cook at 400° F for 25 minutes.
• Allow the pot pie to cool for several minutes before cutting and serving.
• Enjoy!