By Dana Hirsch
Looking for a quick, easy, and delicious meal that’s perfect for the holidays? Do you want a savory alternative to the season's pumpkin and pecan pies? This recipe will be everything you hope for and more!
Chicken pot pie is an American classic but did you know that one cup of chickpeas contains about 40 grams of protein, the same as a cup of chicken? With the gooey delicious flavors and textures of this recipe, going vegetarian is hardly a compromise. As always, this recipe allows for creativity, flexibility of ingredients, and works with common food pantry staples for a budget friendly dish that tastes fancy without the price tag.
Supplies needed:
Stove
Oven
pot/deep pan
Oven safe pie dish
Whisk
Total time: 50 minutes
(baking: 30 minutes, prep: 15, rest: 5 minutes)
Ingredients for 4 portions
4-5 cups of filling vegetables (fresh, frozen, or canned) and/or cooked and shredded chicken–I’m using half a cup each of potatoes, carrots, corn, and peas and 2 cups of soy fake chicken pieces. If you don’t want to use chicken or soy fake chicken, you can use 2 cups of chickpeas (canned vegetables, fresh carrots, and potatoes available at the Purchase food pantry)
2 pie crusts for the top and bottom (I prefer the ready made frozen or refrigerated version but there are many recipes to make your own online!)
Half an onion (optional)
¼ cup of butter, vegan or regular (salted butter available at the Purchase food pantry)
¼ cup of flour
2 ½ cups of chicken or vegetable broth
Salt and pepper to taste
Directions:
If using ready made pie crusts, defrost and leave at room temperature for 15 minutes, if making your own pie crust from scratch, I recommend starting a day ahead of making this dish.
Preheat oven to 425º
If using fresh veggies, cube and boil for 15 minutes; if using frozen veggies, thaw in
advance; if using canned veggies, drain and set aside; chop onion Pro Tip: if potatoes are cooled after boiling, the chemical structure of the starch changes. The body reacts to this “healthier” type of starch with lower blood sugar than if it was not cooled, which can be beneficial especially for people with diabetes.
In a pot or deep pan, add butter and onion, cook until translucent.
Gradually add flour and cook on low until it forms a golden brown paste, heat broth and set aside.
Gradually add in hot or warm broth, whisking the mixture (gradually adding hot or warm liquid will help prevent clumping), cook until thick. Pro Tip: If you like it saucy, add more sauce! This recipe uses 1 part butter, 1 part flour, and 20 parts broth
Add salt and pepper to taste.
Add filling vegetables and/or chicken/ soy fake chicken/ chickpeas to the sauce, mix gently.
When your pie crusts are ready, roll them out gently and place one on your lightly oiled pie dish, gently molding it to the shape of the dish. Be careful! Pie crust is very delicate and you want to avoid holes that may cause your filling to spill.
Scoop prepared filling into the pie crust.
Roll out the second pie crust and cover the pie dish, gently push edges down to seal with the edge of the bottom crust, cut at least four slits on the top Pro Tip: If you’re feeling creative, you can use small cookie cutters for the top pie crust instead of cutting slits–be sure not to cut too many/large holes where your filling may bubble out!
Bake for 15 minutes, then check on the edge of crust and cover edge with aluminum foil to prevent excessive browning. If needed, cook for another 15 minutes (a total of 30 minutes) or until the pie crust is golden brown.
When done, let rest for about 5 minutes, then serve hot and enjoy!
Food insecurity is a common problem among college students. According to the National Student Campaign Against Hunger and Homelessness, 44% of college students cut the size of their meals or skipped meals because there wasn’t enough money for food, 15% lost weight because there wasn’t enough money for food, and 20% did not eat for a whole day because there wasn’t enough money for food.
You can help other students with food insecurity by contributing to the Campus Food Pantry. They are accepting non perishable donations to be dropped off at ALL the dining locations from November 15-19.
If you’re struggling with food insecurity, visit the Food Pantry website, follow their Instagram, or email Food Pantry Supervisor Dilenny Diaz at dilenny.diaz@purchase.edu for more information on how you can access services you need.