Vegetarian Pot Pie Recipe -- The From-Scratch Sunday Dinner That Feels Like Fall Accepting Its Appointment

First full week of fall by the calendar and the trees on the Common have started turning, which is the official announcement that autumn has accepted its appointment. I wore a real sweater Monday and felt the specific satisfaction I've been building toward since June. Fall and I have an understanding that summer and I do not.

The Red Sox are in the playoffs. I note this not as a person who follows baseball with the intensity of Patrick or Sean Sr., but as a person who understands that the emotional weather of the Donovan household is calibrated to the Red Sox schedule from October through whenever they lose, and I navigate accordingly. Sean D. watches with the focused attention of a man who grew up in Dorchester and believes this deeply; Patrick watches with the desperation of a man who believes this more. Sean Sr. watches with the resignation of a man who has watched since 1967 and knows that hope and disappointment are the same thing worn on alternate days.

Fifteen weeks pregnant. The anatomy scan is in three weeks and we have decided to find out the sex because I cannot maintain not knowing for four more months and Sean D. has agreed that my inability to wait is a reasonable thing to accommodate. He is correct. He usually is.

Sunday I made the kind of dinner that I think of as my best version of myself as a cook: shepherd's pie, from scratch, with the ground lamb and the proper mashed potato crust browned under the broiler. It feeds eight and there were three of us — me, Sean D., and his friend Marcus who came over to watch the game — and the leftovers were eaten for lunch the next two days. Some food is better the second day. Shepherd's pie is better the second day. I eat it straight from the dish with a spoon and I don't apologize for that.

The shepherd’s pie I made that Sunday is the kind of recipe I return to every fall without deciding to — it just becomes obvious when the sweaters come out and the light changes. If you’re looking for the same energy in a vegetarian version that still feeds a crowd and holds up even better as leftovers, this pot pie is the answer. Everything that makes a good shepherd’s pie satisfying — the deep savory filling, the comfort of a golden crust, the specific pleasure of eating it cold from the dish on a Tuesday — is here, and it scales exactly right for a household that includes people watching baseball with varying degrees of existential investment.

Vegetarian Pot Pie

Prep Time: 30 min | Cook Time: 50 min | Total Time: 1 hr 20 min | Servings: 8

Ingredients

• 2 prepared pie crusts (store-bought or homemade), enough for a top and bottom crust in a 9x13 baking dish
• 4 tablespoons unsalted butter
• 1 large yellow onion, diced
• 3 medium carrots, peeled and sliced into coins
• 3 stalks celery, sliced
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 2 medium Yukon Gold potatoes, peeled and cut into 1/2-inch cubes
• 1 cup frozen peas
• 1 cup frozen corn
• 8 ounces cremini mushrooms, quartered
• 1/3 cup all-purpose flour
• 2 1/2 cups vegetable broth
• 3/4 cup whole milk
• 1 teaspoon fresh thyme leaves (or 1/2 teaspoon dried)
• 1/2 teaspoon dried rosemary
• 1 teaspoon kosher salt, plus more to taste
• 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
• 1 egg, beaten (for egg wash)

Instructions

1. Preheat the oven. Heat oven to 400°F. If using homemade crust, keep it refrigerated until ready to use.
2. Par-cook the potatoes. Add cubed potatoes to a small saucepan, cover with cold salted water, and bring to a boil. Cook 5 minutes until just barely tender — they will finish in the oven. Drain and set aside.
3. Build the filling base. Melt butter in a large, deep skillet or Dutch oven over medium heat. Add onion, carrots, and celery. Cook, stirring occasionally, until softened, about 8 minutes. Add garlic and mushrooms and cook another 4 minutes until mushrooms release their liquid and it mostly evaporates.
4. Make the roux. Sprinkle flour over the vegetables and stir to coat. Cook 1–2 minutes, stirring constantly, until the raw flour smell is gone.
5. Add liquid and simmer. Gradually pour in the vegetable broth, stirring continuously to prevent lumps. Add the milk, thyme, rosemary, salt, and pepper. Bring to a gentle simmer and cook 5 minutes until the mixture is thick enough to coat the back of a spoon.
6. Add remaining vegetables. Stir in the par-cooked potatoes, frozen peas, and frozen corn. Taste for seasoning and adjust salt and pepper as needed. Remove from heat.
7. Assemble the pie. Press one pie crust into the bottom and up the sides of a 9x13-inch baking dish. Pour the filling in evenly. Lay the second crust over the top, crimping the edges to seal. Cut several vents in the top crust to allow steam to escape. Brush the entire top surface with beaten egg.
8. Bake. Bake at 400°F for 35–40 minutes, until the crust is deep golden brown and the filling is bubbling through the vents. If the edges are browning too quickly, tent them loosely with foil after 20 minutes.
9. Rest before serving. Let the pie rest for at least 10 minutes before cutting — the filling will set slightly and hold its shape. Serve from the dish. Leftovers keep refrigerated for 3 days and are, as stated, better the second day.

Nutrition (per serving)

Calories: 410 | Protein: 9g | Fat: 21g | Carbs: 48g | Fiber: 5g | Sodium: 580mg