Wonderful Winter Vegetable Pie Recipe

A good pie is a true comforting classic. There’s really nothing else quite like it. Of course, there are plenty of fillings to choose from, but one of our family favourites is the Winter Vegetable Pie.

Personally, we favor the potato-topped pie, thick and creamy with melted cheese oozing through the layers of mash. But if a little puff pastry pie topping is more your thing, then worry not for we have a tip-top recipe for this too.

There’s nothing like a warming pie with a golden crust and delicious filling. Our vegetarian pie is a real keeper, so make sure you keep a note of this one!

One portion of this delicious vegetarian shepherd’s pie contains 4 of your recommended 5-a-day intake.

Ingredients

• 2 tbsp olive oil
• 2 onions, sliced
• 1 tbsp flour
• 2 large carrots, cut into chunks
• ½ cauliflower, broken into pieces
• 4 sliced garlic cloves
• 1 chopped rosemary sprig
• 400g chopped tomatoes
• 200g frozen petit pois
• 900g potato, cut into chunks
• 200ml/7fl oz milk (make it vegan and use soya milk)
• Knob of butter
• 100g grated cheddar cheese for topping (optional)

Method:

Heat the oil in a large frying pan over medium heat. Add the onions and cook for 10 minutes until softened, then stir in the flour and cook for another 2 minutes. Add the carrots, cauliflower, garlic, and rosemary, and cook for 5 minutes, stirring regularly, until they begin to soften.

Tip the tomatoes into the winter vegetables along with a can of water. Cover with a lid and simmer for 10 minutes. Remove the lid and cook for 10-15 minutes more, until the sauce has thickened and the vegetables are cooked. Add some salt and pepper and stir in the peas and cook for 1 minute more.

Meanwhile, boil the potatoes for 10-15 mins until tender. Check with a knife to see how soft they are. If they effortlessly cut in half, they’re ready to be drained. Drain the potatoes, then place them back in the saucepan and mash! Stir through the milk to reach a fairly soft consistency, then add the knob of butter and season.

Put the winter vegetable mix into a pie dish, top with the mash, and drag a fork lightly over the surface. Add the grated cheese evenly across the top of the pie. Place under the grill for a few mins until the top is crisp golden brown.

Fancy Puff Pastry Topping Instead?

Ingredients:

• 225g/8oz plain flour, plus extra for rolling out
• ½ tsp fine salt
• 140g/5oz unsalted butter, cold softened
• 150ml/¼ pint ice-cold water

Method:

Sift the flour and salt into a large mixing bowl, then put the bowl in the fridge for a few minutes to chill. (Keeping the flour and bowl cold will help you to get a better result later and create nice layers of pastry.)

Meanwhile, cut the butter into small cubes. Using a round-bladed knife, stir the butter into the bowl until each piece is well coated with flour.

Pour in the water, then, working quickly, use the knife to bring everything together to a rough dough.

Gather the dough in the bowl using one hand, then turn it onto the work surface. Squash the dough into a fat, flat sausage, without kneading. Wrap in cling film then chill the dough in the fridge for 15 minutes.

Lightly flour the work surface and the pastry. Roll out the pastry in one direction until it’s about 1cm thick and three times as long as it is wide, or about 45x15cm/18x6in. Straighten up the sides with your hands now and again, and try to keep the top and bottom edges as square as possible.

Fold the bottom third of the pastry up, then the top third down, to make a block about 15x15cm/6x6in. It doesn’t matter if the pastry isn’t exactly the right size – the important thing is that the corners are nice and square.

Turn the dough so that its open edge is facing to the right, like a book. Press the edges of the pastry together with the rolling pin.

Roll out and fold the pastry again, repeating this four times in all to make a smooth dough, with buttery streaks here and there. If the pastry feels greasy at any point or starts to spring back when as you roll, then cover and chill it for 10 minutes before continuing.

Chill the finished pastry for an hour, or ideally overnight, before using.

When you use the pastry roll it out to about the thickness of a £1 coin. Pop the pastry on top of the winter pie filling and cook it at 200C/400F/Gas 6 for about 30 minutes.

Throughout the year you’ll be able to find our signature seasonal pie on our menu. During winter, we tend to opt for a winter pie or a steak and ale. During the warmer months, we’ll switch it up for a ham and leek pie or something from the chefs’ specials. To taste our current pie, book a table by clicking ‘Book a table’ above.