mini pot pies with leeks and mushrooms
I love pot pie. Until I made these miniature versions (which, by the way, afford endless possibilities for fillings), Kevin was pretty sure he did not. Something about cafeteria versions with frozen peas had turned him off to pot pie nearly permanently. But a buttery, flaky, super savory, handheld version won him over. What's not to love?
This filling is full of flavor from leeks melted into butter, tiny chunks of potato, thyme, and sauteed mushrooms. Since I was already a fan, it's safe to say this is the best pot pie I've ever had. You can make a version with chicken by using diced yellow onion, carrots, and some shredded rotisserie chicken. Try Giada's broccoli and cheddar filling, or Ina's indulgent lobster filling. Heck, you can even add frozen peas if that's your thing.
The body of this recipe is a homemade, part-whole wheat crust that puffs just a little, but you certainly use store-bought pie crust if you prefer. Either way, the technique is the same: roll out the dough until it's quite thin, cut into circles, press into greased muffin tins. Fill with your favorite version of the savory filling and bake until they are golden. They are a crowd-pleaser in miniature and absolutely delicious hot or at room temperature. And they are pretty darn cute.
For the filling, the guiding principle is using the same 1:1 ratio of butter to flour to make a perfect roux. From there, the possibilities are endless. I created this filling with mild leeks, rich mushrooms, and hearty potato. And lots of butter of course. The recipe follows.
Crust
2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 cup whole wheat flour
1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 cup (2 sticks) cold, unsalted butter, cut into cubes
1/3 cup ice water, or a little more if needed
1 egg beaten with 1 tablespoon water for egg wash, optional
Mix together the first 4 ingredients and add to the bowl of a food processor. Add cubes of very cold butter. Pulse about 10 times until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs. (Note: If you don't have a food processor, you can do this in a large bowl with a pastry cutter or 2 forks.) Turn on the food processor and slowly pour in the ice water, processing just until the mixture starts to come together into a ball. Remove the ball of dough from the food processor, pressing together to hold it together a bit if needed and shape into a disk. Cover with saran wrap and refrigerate for 15 minutes.
In the meantime, prepare 2 muffin tins by greasing or spraying with cooking spray.
Roll out the disk of dough on a floured surface, turning and flipping occasionally, until the dough is about 1/8" thick. Using a pint glass upside down, or a 3" cookie cutter, cut the dough into circles. Then roll each circle a tiny bit more to form about 4" circles. Combine the leftover dough scraps and roll out again to get a few more circles. You should be able to get about 2 dozen circles.
Press the dough circles into each muffin tin, stretching the dough if needed to reach all the way up the sides. Fill with your favorite filling and bake at 400 degrees until the edges are golden brown and the filling is bubbly, about 16-18 minutes.
Let cool at least 5 minutes. Use a small off-set spatula to remove pies from the muffin tin and serve.
(Note: If you really, really love pie crust, you can top each pie with another circle of pie crust, seal the edges to the bottom layer, and brush with egg wash so it bakes golden brown. You can see I did a few that way below. But, I found these to be a little doughy; without the top crust, there was still plenty of flaky crust on the bottom to enjoy. You could absolutely bake them "open-face" without a top and they'd be just as good. I cut little squares of the scrap dough and lay them across the top of each one. Best of both worlds.)
Filling
1/2 cup (1 stick) plus 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
3 small white potatoes, diced into 1/2" cubes
2 leeks, white and light green parts chopped, cleaned, and drained
12 ounces white button or cremini mushrooms, stems removed and quartered
1 teaspoon dried thyme, or 2 teaspoons fresh thyme
4 cups chicken stock, hot
1/4 cup heavy cream, optional
In a large nonstick skillet, melt 2 tablespoons butter over medium high heat. Add mushrooms and saute until they turn golden brown, stirring occasionally. Remove mushrooms from skillet and set aside.
Placed diced potatoes in a medium saucepan and cover with cold water. Cover and bring to boil. Allow to cook just until fork tender, about 10 minutes. Drain potatoes and set aside.
In a heavy-bottom saucepan, melt 1/2 cup butter. Add leeks and cook over medium heat until soft, 8-10 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add thyme, 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt, and 1/2 teaspoon black pepper, and stir. Sprinkle flour over the top of butter and leeks. Cook about 2 minutes, stirring the entire time, to create a roux. Add hot chicken stock, one cup at a time, and stir vigorously until it forms a thick sauce. Taste the mixture and add more salt if needed.
Stir in potatoes and mushrooms. Stir in cream if desired. Set aside to cool slightly before using.
Fill mini crusts using a 1/4-cup measuring cup and bake until golden brown and bubbly. Garnish with fresh parlsey or thyme.
This filling is full of flavor from leeks melted into butter, tiny chunks of potato, thyme, and sauteed mushrooms. Since I was already a fan, it's safe to say this is the best pot pie I've ever had. You can make a version with chicken by using diced yellow onion, carrots, and some shredded rotisserie chicken. Try Giada's broccoli and cheddar filling, or Ina's indulgent lobster filling. Heck, you can even add frozen peas if that's your thing.
The body of this recipe is a homemade, part-whole wheat crust that puffs just a little, but you certainly use store-bought pie crust if you prefer. Either way, the technique is the same: roll out the dough until it's quite thin, cut into circles, press into greased muffin tins. Fill with your favorite version of the savory filling and bake until they are golden. They are a crowd-pleaser in miniature and absolutely delicious hot or at room temperature. And they are pretty darn cute.
For the filling, the guiding principle is using the same 1:1 ratio of butter to flour to make a perfect roux. From there, the possibilities are endless. I created this filling with mild leeks, rich mushrooms, and hearty potato. And lots of butter of course. The recipe follows.
Crust
2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 cup whole wheat flour
1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 cup (2 sticks) cold, unsalted butter, cut into cubes
1/3 cup ice water, or a little more if needed
1 egg beaten with 1 tablespoon water for egg wash, optional
Mix together the first 4 ingredients and add to the bowl of a food processor. Add cubes of very cold butter. Pulse about 10 times until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs. (Note: If you don't have a food processor, you can do this in a large bowl with a pastry cutter or 2 forks.) Turn on the food processor and slowly pour in the ice water, processing just until the mixture starts to come together into a ball. Remove the ball of dough from the food processor, pressing together to hold it together a bit if needed and shape into a disk. Cover with saran wrap and refrigerate for 15 minutes.
In the meantime, prepare 2 muffin tins by greasing or spraying with cooking spray.
Roll out the disk of dough on a floured surface, turning and flipping occasionally, until the dough is about 1/8" thick. Using a pint glass upside down, or a 3" cookie cutter, cut the dough into circles. Then roll each circle a tiny bit more to form about 4" circles. Combine the leftover dough scraps and roll out again to get a few more circles. You should be able to get about 2 dozen circles.
Press the dough circles into each muffin tin, stretching the dough if needed to reach all the way up the sides. Fill with your favorite filling and bake at 400 degrees until the edges are golden brown and the filling is bubbly, about 16-18 minutes.
Let cool at least 5 minutes. Use a small off-set spatula to remove pies from the muffin tin and serve.
(Note: If you really, really love pie crust, you can top each pie with another circle of pie crust, seal the edges to the bottom layer, and brush with egg wash so it bakes golden brown. You can see I did a few that way below. But, I found these to be a little doughy; without the top crust, there was still plenty of flaky crust on the bottom to enjoy. You could absolutely bake them "open-face" without a top and they'd be just as good. I cut little squares of the scrap dough and lay them across the top of each one. Best of both worlds.)
Filling
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
3 small white potatoes, diced into 1/2" cubes
2 leeks, white and light green parts chopped, cleaned, and drained
12 ounces white button or cremini mushrooms, stems removed and quartered
1 teaspoon dried thyme, or 2 teaspoons fresh thyme
4 cups chicken stock, hot
1/4 cup heavy cream, optional
In a large nonstick skillet, melt 2 tablespoons butter over medium high heat. Add mushrooms and saute until they turn golden brown, stirring occasionally. Remove mushrooms from skillet and set aside.
Placed diced potatoes in a medium saucepan and cover with cold water. Cover and bring to boil. Allow to cook just until fork tender, about 10 minutes. Drain potatoes and set aside.
In a heavy-bottom saucepan, melt 1/2 cup butter. Add leeks and cook over medium heat until soft, 8-10 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add thyme, 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt, and 1/2 teaspoon black pepper, and stir. Sprinkle flour over the top of butter and leeks. Cook about 2 minutes, stirring the entire time, to create a roux. Add hot chicken stock, one cup at a time, and stir vigorously until it forms a thick sauce. Taste the mixture and add more salt if needed.
Stir in potatoes and mushrooms. Stir in cream if desired. Set aside to cool slightly before using.
Fill mini crusts using a 1/4-cup measuring cup and bake until golden brown and bubbly. Garnish with fresh parlsey or thyme.