Vegetable Pot Pie

Sometimes the simplest dishes make an outstanding centerpiece on your dinner table.  Every Thanksgiving I make this Pot Pie, it is becoming a tradition in our house. So, what are Pot pies? Usually Pot pies are flaky pastry crusts enclosing a savory filling.  This recipe is such a no fuss dish, easy, and pretty quick to make.  I adapted this recipe from Vegetarian Times Magazine and changed some ingredients and proportions to suited to my family's taste. To make my job easy, I used frozen puff pastry sheets to make that crust.
Try it out, I am sure you will like it.

This recipe serves 4 people.

Ingredients:

• 1 tbsp butter (or olive oil)
• 1/2 cup each, of white beans and kidney beans, cooked  
• 1 onion, chopped
• 3 spring onions, whites and greens chopped
• 2-3 cloves of garlic, minced
• 2 red & green peppers, chopped
• 1 cup mushrooms chopped
• 1 large carrot (or 2 medium), diced
• 1 cup frozen corn
• 1 cup frozen peas
• 1 cup green beans cut into 1 inch pieces
• About 8 Oz. small shell pasta
• 1/2 tbsp of each dried basil, dried parsley, cayanne pepper
• 1 tbsp of curry powder
• 1 bay leaf
• Pinch of saffron
• Palm full of fennel seeds
• Few sprigs of cilantro, chopped (optional)
• 4 cups of vegetable broth
• 1 tbsp cornstarch
• 1 tbsp whole wheat flour
• Shredded parmesan cheese
• 1 sheet puff pastry sheet, thawed at room temperature
• Salt and pepper to taste

Method:

1. Preheat oven to 350°F. 
2. Heat butter/oil in a large saucepan. Saute the onion, spring onion until browned. Add garlic.
3. Add celery, peppers, mushrooms and carrot and saute for another 5 minutes.
4. Stir in the broth, corn, green beans white beans, kidney beans, dried herbs, bay leaf along with all the other spices. Let it come to a slight boil, then add the pasta.
5. Cook until pasta is a little tender. Remove the bay leaf.
6. In a medium bowl, whisk together the cornstarch & flour along with 1/2 cup cold water.
7. Stir this into the vegetables along with the cheese. Add more salt/pepper if required.
8. Remove from heat and add the peas along with chopped cilantro. Give it a mix until well combined.
9. Roll the puff pastry sheet using a rolling pin to cut 4 or 6 squares.
10. Take small ramekin dishes and fill them 3/4 full with the vegetable mixture.
11. Place the cut puff pastry square and drape it over the filling, tucking in the sides. Pierce the tops in several places with a knife to allow steam to escape.
12. Bake for 30-40 minutes or until the crust is flaky and brown.

Ginger Capcicum Rice

We ate this dish recently at an indo-chinese restaurant and both me & my husband loved it. I decided to give it a try with the flavors that I remembered while I indulged it. The result was excellent and I decided to blog it so you all can try and enjoy it too.


Ingredients:

• 3 cups cooked long grain rice
• 1 Onions (cut into thin long strips)
• 2 Capsicum/Bell-pepper (cut into thin long strips)
• Ginger – 3" long piece; finely chopped/minced
• Garlic minced/crushed (according to taste)
• Green Chillies ( according to taste)
• 3-4 tbsp Spring Onions (roughly chopped)
• 2-3 tbsp Soy-sauce
• 2-3 tbsp Chilli-sauce (or as much to suit your taste)
• 1-2 tbsp maple syrup
• 2 tbsp Ghee – 2 tbsp

Method:

1. Once the rice is cooked, gently spread on a wide plate and let it cool, Don’t stir too much, else you’ll end up with mashed rice.
2. Now, heat ghee in a wok. Add the onions, ginger, garlic and green chillies. Saute on a medium flame till the onions are cooked tender. 
3. Add the spring onions and saute another 2 minutes till they wilt. 
4. Next, throw in the chopped capsicum/bell-pepper and continue to saute till the capsicum is a little tender.
5. Simmer the flame and add the soy-sauce and chilli sauce, maple syrup. Stir well. 
6. Add the cooled rice to the wok, stir well to incorporate and cook on a high flame for 3-5 minutes, stirring continuously. 
7. Remove from flame and serve hot. 

Quinoa Chilli

When I got this recipe from my friend, I tried it the next day. It is a one pot meal which is super easy to make and delicious too! I call it a vegetarian meal which is protein-packed and a perfect bowl of comfort food that you can eat guilt-free!

 

Ingredients:

• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 small onion, diced
• 2 cups cooked quinoa (I cooked mine with Vegetable broth)
• 2 (14.5-ounce) cans diced tomatoes
• 1 (15-ounce) can tomato sauce
• 1 -2 diced green serrano chilies
• 1 1/2 tablespoons chili powder, or more, to taste
• 2 teaspoons cumin
• 1 1/2 teaspoons paprika
• 1 1/2 teaspoons sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
• 1/2 teaspoon ground coriander
• Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
• 1 (15-ounce) can kidney beans, drained and rinsed
• 1 (15-ounce) can black beans, drained and rinsed
• 1 1/2 cups corn kernels 
• 1 1/2 cups of Vegetable broth
• 3 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro leaves
• Juice of 1 lime
• 1 avocado, halved, seeded, peeled and diced
• Sour Cream
• Shredded Jack Cheese (optional)

 

Method:

1. Heat olive oil in a Dutch oven, or large pot, over medium high heat. A
2. Add garlic and onion, and cook, stirring frequently, until onions have become translucent, about 2-3 minutes.
3. Stir in the quinoa, diced tomatoes, tomato sauce, green chilies, chili powder, cumin, paprika, sugar, cayenne pepper, coriander and 1-2 cups Vegetable broth - enough to make sure to cover most of the ingredients; season with salt and pepper, to taste.
4. Reduce heat to low; simmer, covered, until thickened - about 30 minutes.
5. Stir in beans & corn & lime juice until heated through - about 2 minutes.
6. Serve immediately with sour cream, avocado, cheese & garnish it cilantro.