Veggie Pot Pie

It's getting chilly and icky. Yesterday was drizzly and cold enough that our furnace got its first workout of the season. For me, this means it's time for warm yumminess coming from the kitchen. Currently I'm making some apple butter (and it smells GOOD). Once I've finished I'll post the info. In the mean time here is a cold weather favorite from our house- Veggie Pot Pie.

Filling:

2 tablespoons olive oil

1 medium onion chopped

12 oz of assorted frozen veggies

handful 'mixed veggies' (the peas/carrot stuff)
2 red potatos, diced

1 portobello mushroom or a handful of regular mushrooms (optional)

1 can (10 3/4 oz) condensed cream of anything soup

Herbs (thyme & savory mix), salt, pepper to taste

Biscuit Topping:

1 ¾ cup whole wheat flour (pastry if you have it)

½ tsp salt

2 tsp baking powder

½ tsp baking soda

2 tablespoons butter

¾ cup buttermilk

1 tbsp honey

2 quart pyrex dish

1. Sautee onions over medium low heat. While the mushrooms soften chop potato and mushroom while it cooks.
2. Add potato, and mushroom, stirring occasionally, approx 5 minutes.
3. Add 1bag of frozen veggies and a handful of the carrots/peas mix. Cook until defrosted/ you’re at a stopping point with the dough.
4. In a large bowl, mix the flour, salt, baking powder, and baking soda. Using a fork, cut the butter into the flour mixture until it resembles coarse meal.
5. In a measuring cup, combine the buttermilk and honey. Add to the flour mixture, stirring with a fork to form a stiff dough. Add more buttermilk if the dough is too dry.
6. Add one can cream of mushroom soup, ½ cup of water to pot, and spices. Mix a little and let simmer.
7. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
8. Knead dough lightly in the bowl for 3 to 5 minutes, until the dough is no longer sticky.
9. Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface. Roll out into a shape to cover the casserole dish.
10. Pour veggies into casserole dish. Lay dough over dish. Don’t push down, but make sure it fits within the dish. Use a sharp knife to cut some vents in the dough. Put on baking tray put in the oven.
11. Bake 25-30 minutes. You know its done when the dough is lightly browned and the insides are bubbling. You can use a knife to see if the crust is done or eyeball it.
12. Let it sit for a few minutes. Dig in.

The ingredients for the filling are very flexible. Gameboy has added a few different types of meat (if you do this reduce the veggies some). I use whatever bag of assorted frozen veggies strikes me at the moment. The only thing I'm picky about is the 'mixed veggies' to add peas and carrots to the mix.

I always have questions about recipes I read online, so feel free to leave questions in the comments.

When you run out of the essentials

One day last week I really wanted some biscuits. I measured out the flour and salt, mixed in the cheddar, chopped up the onion (I was making cheddar/spring onion biscuits), and realized I didn't have any baking powder.

In general I'm not a big fan of making lot's of random trips to the grocery store. It tends to send the budget through the roof, wastes gas, and more importantly, I wanted the biscuits 10 minutes ago. Instead I turned to our friend Google. I'll spare you the science, but in a pinch the recipe below will work. I haven't looked at prices recently to know if this is more/less expensive than the regular stuff, but I will next time I visit the grocery store.

For 1 teaspoon (tsp) of baking powder:
1/4 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp cream of tarter
1/4 tsp of cornstarch

UPDATE: This doesn't really fit the WFMW theme, but with kids I babysit/younger family I love baking on a rainy day. Who wants to go in search of baking powder in the rain with kids? My second favorite rainy summer day activity- running around in the rain.

Resturaunt food at home

If you're trying not to eat out this month (or in general) Top Secret Recipes is a fun site. You have to pay for most of the recipes but most categories have a few free ones.

Happy eating!