Monday, October 10, 2011

Roasted Root Vegetable Pot Pie and Meeting New Friends


Yesterday, I had the pleasure of meeting some new friends here in Seattle. We all participate in the marvelous cooking site Food52 and decided it was time to have a meetup. Arriving from Gig Harbor, Sumner and Seattle, WA, Portland, OR and even Berkeley, CA, we met in person and shared our love of food, cooking and eating.


Nine of us (including the lovely daughter of one participant who received the news of an amazing cooking job minutes before we arrived!) gathered around a beautiful table spread with whatever dishes we had been inspired to create. We spent the afternoon sipping Prosecco and homemade shrubs mixed with seltzer. We tasted little tarts with roasted golden beets and hazelnuts, pickled prunes, marinated eggplant, polenta cups stuffed with tomatoes, Italian sausages, wraps filled with cheese, basil and roasted peppers and roasted root vegetable pot pie. We indulged in lemon coconut cookies, chocolate dipped dried pears, rocky road bars, pear rosemary Danish, pumpkin oat cookies and chocolate chip cookies.


The table buzzed with the sounds of laughter and chatting, plus occasional sighs of delight. It was truly a wonderful Sunday afternoon. I appreciate meeting such gracious, kind, interesting, talented women! We plan to meet again soon and hope to include more Pacific Northwest friends.


Roasted Root Vegetable Pot Pie was one of my contributions. The pie consists of a medley of root vegetables which are roasted with olive oil and maple syrup, and covered with a flaky cheddar biscuit crust (much like a cobbler). It can be prepared in steps ahead of time, serves a crowd and makes a hearty entrée to enjoy on a fall evening.

Roasted Root Vegetable Pot Pie

Adapted from Joy of Cooking
By Irma S. Rombauer, Marion Rombauer and Ethan Becker
Serves 10-12

1 medium rutabaga, cut into 1 inch pieces
2 red onions, peeled and cut into thick wedges
2 medium parsnips, peeled and sliced into 1 inch pieces
4 medium carrots, sliced into 1 inch pieces (no need to peel)
2 medium beets (red or yellow), cut into 1 inch pieces (you can peel if you prefer)
1 medium sweet potato, cut into 1 inch pieces
1/4 cup maple syrup
1/4 cup olive oil
4 cups vegetable broth
1 teaspoon dried thyme
1 1/2 cups whole wheat flour, divided
2 teaspoons salt, divided
1 cup all-purpose flour
2 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
A few grinds of black pepper
6 tablespoons unsalted butter, chilled
3/4 cup heavy cream
1 cup grated sharp cheddar cheese

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Toss the veggies, maple syrup and olive oil together in a bowl, then spread on two rimmed baking sheets. Roast the veggies in the oven for about 45 minutes to 1 hour, until they are soft but still a little firm. Rotate the baking sheets and stir a few times (I’ve also piled all the veggies on one rimmed baking sheet and as they roast they shrink down. Stir often if you choose this method.) This step can be done one day ahead. Cover and refrigerate if making ahead.

Transfer the roasted vegetables to a 9x13 baking dish. Pour the vegetable broth over the veggies. Sprinkle the thyme, 1/2 cup whole wheat flour and 1 teaspoon salt in and gently stir to combine. Cover the pan and bake for 25 minutes.

In a medium bowl, stir together the remaining 1 cup whole wheat flour, 1 cup all-purpose flour, baking powder, remaining 1 teaspoon salt and some pepper. Cut the butter into little pieces and mix in quickly (I use my fingertips). Stir in the cream to create a biscuit-like dough, then add 3/4 cup of the shredded cheese.

Uncover the veggies, stir gently and drop the dough in pieces on top evenly. Sprinkle with the remaining 1/4 cup cheese. Bake for 20 minutes, until golden brown. Serve warm or room temperature.

14 comments:

  1. This looks wonderful! I love roast veggies more and more with each passing year. So versatile and flavorful!

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  2. @B
    Thank you, B! You are right, roasted veggies really are versatile. I love how sweet they become. Great snacking, too...when I roast a pan of veggies, we end up eating half of it before I can make a dish with them!

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  3. Wow! It sounds like you had a wonderful day. Prosecco and small bites of amazing food, what could be better? This pot pie looks like just the thing for Seattle's now cold, rainy days. What a great side dish, or even a main one I would imagine.

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  4. I swear I bookmark nearly every single one of your recipes. This sounds amazing!!!

    Oh, and I am totally jealous of your Food52 meetup! I looked up blogger meetups here in Wichita and all I found were Wiccans and anti-abortion activists (not in the same meetup, though!). I guess I'll have to just not be lazy and actually start one. And I need to actually put my recipes on Food 52!

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  5. @Mikaela Cowles
    Thank you, Mikaela! Yeah, hard not to enjoy an afternoon of Prosecco and nibbles... happy to do that anytime.

    The pot pie does make a good vegetarian main dish. Cold and rainy here is right. I couldn't believe the wind and rain earlier this week!

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  6. @Lauren
    Oh Lauren, this makes me happy!

    Hmmm, that's quite a selection of blogging meetup options for you. Oh my! The thought of them together made me giggle. You should definitely start a food blogger meetup, I'm sure there are other food lovers nearby and you have so much to share. :)

    I'm way behind putting recipes on Food52...on my to-do list.

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  7. Sounds like a wonderful get together, so much fun meeting online friends in person :) And the crust on that pie sounds right up my alley.

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  8. @Mairi
    It really was terrific to meet online friends in person. I hope to meet more over time - either in Seattle or by traveling. :)

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  9. I finally got around to making this tonight.
    DEELISH!!

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  10. @Pauline
    Oh, I'm happy you liked it, Pauline! Thanks for letting me know.

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