Vegan mushroom pie – Lazy Cat Kitchen

With the skin temperature dropping to the bottom it’s been this 12 months but (we had a little bit of snowfall this morning and it’s was so good to get up to it, it’s all melted by now sadly), the necessity for consolation meals has elevated steadily and Christmas is approaching quick too so I figured a low effort dinner centerpiece would do properly.

With that in thoughts, I made a deliciously creamy and tacky vegan mushroom pie, which continues my mushroom theme I began on Wednesday with this festive layered pâté .

This vegan mushroom pie is bursting with flavour and is basically fairly simple to make. You possibly can make the filling effectively prematurely – freeze it even – after which assemble and bake the pie on the day. It might make for a pleasant, low effort vegan centerpiece at Christmas or Thanksgiving if making a extra elaborate vegan Wellington doesn’t attraction. Under, I stroll you thru all the important thing components and the method of creating this straightforward pie, together with detailed step-by-step photographs. I hope you’ll give it a crack and in the event you do that you just’ll get pleasure from it!

MORE ABOUT THE INGREDIENTS

MUSHROOM: You should utilize any recent mushrooms you get pleasure from, however as I needed this recipe to be as accessible as attainable, I went for brown mushrooms generally known as chestnut within the UK (and cremini within the US).

HERBS: I used a mix of recent thyme and rosemary to flavour the filling however both of them on their very own works effectively too. You possibly can, after all, use dried herbs too, however go simple on them – I’d begin with a superb pinch – as they are usually (supplied they aren’t stale) extra pungent than recent.

BALSAMIC: balsamic vinegar works rather well with mushrooms () and it cuts by the richness of the filling splendidly. If attainable, splash out (it prices about £7 / 8.5 $ in my native retailer) on a bottle of aged balsamic vingar as its flavour and consistency is so significantly better.

NUTRITIONAL YEAST: nutritional yeast is a staple vegan seasoning that provides a tacky flavour. It’s inactive yeast so don’t fear if the title freaks you out – we aren’t including baker’s yeast to something. When you don’t have it, you would use white miso paste as an alternative though in a lot smaller amount (1 tbsp needs to be a lot).

TAPIOCA: tapioca, also called tapioca starch, is a thickener and I used a small quantity of it right here to thicken the ‘cheese’ sauce in order that it binds the filling higher. Cornflour (cornstarch) or arrowroot are each generally used replacements, however I’ve not tried them on this dish so I can’t assure that they are going to work simply as effectively.

CASHEWS: I used cashews to create a very easy vegan cheese / cheese sauce to bind the mushroom filling collectively, add creaminess and substance to the filling. When you discovered a melty vegan change that you just get pleasure from, you need to use that as an alternative (and skip the whole making of cashew cheese course of – STEPS 7 & 8). When you can’t have cashews, soaked sunflower seeds will deliver very related consequence.

BREADCRUMBS: I used a sprinkling of breadcrumbs on the pastry to make sure that it doesn’t get soggy from the filling. If you’re gluten-free, use coarsely floor walnuts.

PUFF PASTRY: opposite to a well-liked perception, a number of commerically out there pastry is by accident vegan and that features puff pastry. It goes with out saying that if the pastry is marketed as ‘butter’ or ‘all butter’, it received’t be vegan but when no such declare is made, it’s price taking a look on the components checklist. I used a prepared rolled puff pastry that is available in 23 cm / 9″ by 37 cm / 14.5″ sheets and weighs 320 g / 11 oz. My baked pie was 20 cm / 8 inches lengthy and 14 cm / 5.5 inches vast. If you wish to make this dish gluten-free, search for gluten-free (and vegan) puff pastry. It’s offered within the UK by a Jus Roll brand, for instance.

Sauté shallots and garlic till softened and aromatic first, then take away from the pan and sauté mushrooms till cooked – shrunk and darkish brown – and the entire liquid has cooked off.

As soon as mushrooms are finished, return shallot and garlic combination to the pan. Season effectively, add balsamic and prepare dinner for a number of additional minutes to caramelise a little bit. Whisk the ‘cheese’ sauce in a separate pan for a few minutes, till thickened and a little bit strechy.

Add thickened cheese to the mushroom combination and fold the 2 along with a versatile spatula, till effectively mixed. Calm down fully earlier than assembling the pie.

Divide your pastry sheet into two unequal components, the smaller one will type the bottom of the pie and the larger one will drape over the filling. Sprinkle the bottom with breadcrumbs leaving 1.5 cm / 0.5 inch throughout for sealing, then heap the mushroom filling on high. Utilizing a spatula, type it right into a uniform mound, sprinkle some extra breadcrumbs on high of the filling then loosely cowl with the larger piece of pastry.

Subsequent step is to form the pie. Utilizing your palms gently drape the pasty over the filling with out streching it in any respect. Use your fingertips after which tines of a fork to seal the highest sheet of pastry with the bottom across the filling. Trim the surplus pastry with a pointy knife. Brush the pastry with a vegan eggwash combination, sprinkle with seeds of alternative and utilizing a pointy knife make 3-4 slashed within the pastry high in order that the build-up of steam has a method of escaping. Refrigerate till the oven has been pre-heated, then bake till golden-brown.