Monday, February 11, 2013

Vegetarian Pot Pies with Feta Scallion Biscuits


The veggie pot pie was good, but it was not what defined the dish. Tonight was all about the biscuit. A perfect, light and flaky biscuit filled with feta cheese and scallions. I will be making it often as it will be the perfect accompaniment to many soups and stews.  
Ingredients:
For the filling:
3 tbsp. butter
1 medium yellow onion, chopped
1 red bell pepper, seeded and chopped
2 carrots, peeled and chopped
12 oz. baby bella mushrooms, sliced (this is 2 cartons)
¾ cup frozen peas
2 cloves garlic, minced
½ tsp. red pepper flakes
6 tbsp. all-purpose flour
1 can veggie broth
Salt and pepper, to taste

For the biscuit topping:
1½ cups all-purpose flour
1½ tsp. baking powder
½ tsp. salt
Freshly ground black pepper, to taste
6 tbsp. cold unsalted butter, cut into pieces
¼ cup crumbled feta cheese
¼ cup chopped scallions
½ cup plus 1-2 tbsp. buttermilk**(see buttermilk substitiution below)

Directions:
Preheat the oven to 400˚ F. Lightly grease a 2-quart casserole dish.
 
To make the filling, melt the butter in a large pan or Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add the onion, bell pepper, and carrots to the pan and sauté, stirring occasionally, until the vegetables begin to soften. Stir in the mushrooms and continue to cook, stirring occasionally, until the mushrooms have released most of their liquid and softened. Stir in the garlic and red pepper flakes and cook just until fragrant, about 1 minute. Add in the flour and stir so that it evenly coats the vegetable mixture. Cook for about 1 minute. A bit at a time, stir in the veggie broth, mixing each addition until it has been fully incorporated. Once all the liquid has been added, let cook, stirring occasionally, until the filling bubbles and thickens. Remove from the heat. Stir in the peas. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Pour the filling in the casserole dish.
 
To make the biscuit topping, combine the flour, baking powder, salt and pepper in a medium bowl. Whisk to blend. Stir in the pieces of butter and toss to coat in the dry ingredients. Using a fork or a pastry cutter, cut the butter into the dry ingredients until the mixture is coarse largest butter chunks are the size of small peas. Stir in the feta and scallions and toss briefly to combine. Pour in ½ cup of the buttermilk and stir gently with a fork until a dough has formed. If necessary, add the remaining 1-2 tablespoons of buttermilk to form a fully cohesive dough. (Be careful to avoid overmixing or kneading, otherwise you will end up with a tough dough.)
 
Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured work surface and pat to a thickness of about ¾- to 1-inch. Use a biscuit cutter to cut out rounds of the dough and place on top of  the veggie filling. Lightly brush the tops of the biscuits with additional buttermilk and add a sprinkle of freshly ground pepper. Reroll the dough scraps to make additional biscuits. (There will be extra dough for additional biscuits. Bake them separately on a parchment paper lined baking sheet as extra to enjoy with the dish!)
Transfer the dish to the  oven and bake until the biscuits are light golden brown and the filling is bubbling, about 25 minutes.
 
           **Buttermilk Substitutions:
 
Lemon and Milk
In a 1-cup measuring cup, add 1 Tablespoon of fresh lemon juice. Top the lemon juice with with skim, low fat or whole milk. Stir and let sit for two minutes. After two minutes, your milk is both acidic and curdled. Perfect!
 
OR
 
Yogurt and Milk
Mix 3/4 cup plain yogurt with 1/4 cup of milk. Stir and make it a quick substitution for buttermilk.
 
Source: AnniesEats
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