Mini vegetable pot pie is the perfect entree option for your holiday gathering. These adorable little pies are packed with vegetables, beans, and a creamy cashew sauce. Vegan.
It’s starting to feel a lot like Christmas. Although we still can’t have a tree for the third year in a row, because a certain cat can’t be trusted with almost anything he could fit in his mouth, it’s showing in other ways.
(Sorry, dangly ornaments and strings of brightly colored lights. Maybe next year. But let’s be honest, probably not next year.)
David and I drive through our neighborhood with festive tunes playing on the radio and pass flashing houses in white, red, and green.
There’s an ugly sweater folded at the top of my dresser drawers. And right on cue, this past weekend we even shoveled.
It wasn’t a ton of snow, just a couple of inches. But it was wet enough that by afternoon, my Facebook feed was filled with pictures of kids and snowmen.
After we put our shovels away, I was in the mood for something cozy and warming.
These elegant vegetable pot pies are a far cry from the 40 cents apiece version I had lined up in my freezer as a young 20-something just out of college.
I’ve made the pot pies multiple times for testing. And I’d gladly eat another one all over again right this minute. They are ridiculously good.
They are filled with veggies aplenty – onions, carrots, celery, green peas, and potatoes. Plus, beans for satiety.
The creamy sauce is made from cashews and savory spices. (Yep, this velvety filling doesn’t include a drop of dairy.)
And on top? A home crust that’s buttery and flaky.
How to make mini pot pies
Start by making your pie crust and cutting it into circles. Put it into the refrigerator to cool while you make the filling.
Pour the prepared filling into mini cocottes or 8 ounce ramekins. Top each one with a circle of dough. Then bake for thirty minutes.
Individual pot pies feel like a present
“You made this just for me?”
They are impressive but unassuming. I mean, who doesn’t like pot pies?
Even dinner guests who are wary of “vegan food” could hardly turn down the temptation of a luscious sauce dotted with vegetables and a nutty pastry crust.
So put on your favorite crackling Christmas record. You know, the one where you have all of the skips and scratches memorized after years of play?
Pull out the ugly Christmas sweater from the top drawer, and invite over a few friends to celebrate the season.
Then serve each one a mini vegetable pot pie and feel the season hug you from the inside out.
Mini vegetable pot pies
Ingredients
For pot pie crust
- 1 cup all purpose flour
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon dried rosemary
- 6 Tablespoons non-dairy butter
- 2 Tablespoons ice water
- 1 teaspoon white wine vinegar
For pot pie filling
- ¼ cup + 2 Tablespoons raw cashews*
- 2 cups water divided
- ½ teaspoon extra virgin olive oil
- 1 cup chopped onion in medium pieces
- 2 cloves garlic minced
- ½ cup sliced celery
- ½ teaspoon dried rosemary
- ½ teaspoon dried basil
- 1 vegetable bouillon cube
- ½ cup thinly sliced carrots cut into coins
- 1 medium Russet potato about 6 ounces, chopped in small to medium pieces
- ½ cup green peas Fresh or frozen are fine
- ¾ teaspoon salt
- 15 ounce can chickpeas or Great Northern beans, drained (Don't discard bean liquid; reserve it for later use in this recipe)
Instructions
To make pot pie crust
- In a large mixing bowl, use a fork to combine all purpose flour with salt and dried rosemary. Add non-dairy butter. Using your fingers, fully combine the flour with the non-dairy butter until it has the texture of small pebbles.
- In a small separate bowl, combine ice water and white wine vinegar.
- Add the water/vinegar mixture to the mixing bowl with flour. Use your hands to combine the wet and dry mixtures until one ball of dough has formed. It should be smooth and not sticky.
- For easiest rolling, wrap the dough in plastic and cool in the refrigerator for at least an hour. If you don't have time, it's okay to skip this step, but the dough won't roll quite as easily.**
- Once you are ready to make the pot pies, roll out the dough with a rolling pin. It should be thin enough that you can get 5 mini tops for each pot pie. (You may need to gather the scraps and roll out again for the fifth pot pie lid. That's fine.) You can use either a biscuit cutter to cut out the tops or use a knife and a cocotte lid or extra ramekin as a guide to trace. If you use the cocotte lids/ramekins as a guide, you may need to roll each one out a little bit further to fully cover the pot pie. Put the dough circles into the refrigerator to keep cool while you make the pot pie filling.
To make the pot pie filling
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
- Put the raw cashews into a blender with ½ cup of water. Blend until it is completely smooth, a thick cashew cream. Set aside.
- Bring a soup pot to a medium heat with extra virgin olive oil. Saute onion in oil for about 5 minutes, until it has softened slightly and is fragrant. Add garlic, celery, dried rosemary, dried basil, and saute for a minute more. Add remaining 1 ½ cups water, vegetable bouillon cube, carrots, potato, green peas, salt, and drained chickpeas or Great Northern beans. Bring to a simmer. Then lower heat, cover, and cook for 7 minutes, until the potato has softened slightly.
- Add cashew cream from blender and cook for 5 minutes more over a low medium heat, so that the cashew cream can reduce slightly and flavors can combine. Stir occasionally.
- Use a ladle to put even amounts of the pot pie filling into each 8 ounce cocotte or ramekin. Using a fingers or pastry brush, spread a thin layer of the saved bean liquid onto the top edge of the cocottes.
- Put an individual crust onto each cocotte and pinch around the edges to seal. Use a sharp knife to put a few vent holes into the top of each pot pie. Use fingers or pastry brush again to lightly spread bean liquid across the top of each crust for better browning.
- Put the cocottes/ramekins on a baking sheet, so that if the pot pie filling bubbles over, it will fall onto the baking sheet and not the oven.
- Bake for 30 minutes. When they are ready, the tops will be a nutty brown color. Remove from oven and allow the pot pies to rest for at least 10 minutes before serving. (The filling will be quite hot.)
Notes
Nutrition
Prefer to make a full-sized pot pie?
Check out this chicken-style vegan pot pie. It’s made with frozen, store-bought pie crusts!
And you can use your mini cocottes to make this vegan feta cheese recipe.
Dianne's Vegan Kitchen
This little potpies are so cute!! They look far better than those frozen ones I grew up on. I have yet to try to make potpies myself, but you make it look so easy, so I’m going to need to try your recipe.
Cadry
Thanks, Dianne! Yes, you should definitely give these pot pies a whirl. There are a few steps involved, but nothing you couldn’t handle.
Shell
The potpies are adorable! They are the perfect meal for the weather we are having this week. Lots of yummy stuff in one cute dish.
Cadry
Thanks, Shell! Yes, this cold weather calls for something cozy and warming. Just add a simple salad or sauteed greens, and you’ve got a whole meal!
Becky Striepe
This looks like such a cozy meal, Cadry! Miniature food is the best!
Cadry
I agree! There’s something so fun & special about miniature food.
Susan
Yum! Even though it is summer here, it is raining today and that is making me want to eat cold weather food.
Cadry
Ha! That sounds like the PERFECT way to enjoy cold weather food. Pot pie with rain today, sunning at the beach tomorrow! 😀
Amy Katz from Veggies Save The Day
Your pot pies look amazing, Cadry! I haven’t had a pot pie in years!
Cadry
Thanks, Amy! It sounds like it’s time to remedy that. 😀
The Vegan 8
These are just beautiful Cadry! I absolutely love veggie pot pies and I can almost smell and taste yours. They look incredibly delicious! What a fantastic recipe, I’d really like some in front of me right now!
Cadry
Thank you, Brandi! <3
Mel | avirtualvegan.com
Oh my these pies look so delicious! I love that creamy filling and if it’s got pastry its always a winner for me too!
Cadry
I totally agree. Who can refuse something topped with pastry? 🙂
Sophia | Veggies Don't Bite
These are SO cute! And they look delicious. I love that they are mini. Perfect for a small party!
Cadry
Thanks, Sophia! These would be great for a holiday dinner party, and it wouldn’t be hard to double everything to make more.
Dreena Burton
Something about pot pies gives a message that love went into the meal. These look just perfect, that crust!! Also, why don’t I have an ugly Christmas sweater??!!
Cadry
You’re absolutely right, Dreena! Pot pies feel so homey. You’ll have to get on finding the perfect ugly sweater! There are lots of good ones available now.
Alisa
I love personal serve dinners like this and pot pies sound so fulfilling with the drizzly weather outside. May need to whip these up!
Cadry
Yes, there’s something about personal-sized things that ups the fun factor. If you make them, I hope you enjoy them, Alisa!
Vegan Heaven
This sounds so yummy! I love all the great veggies in it. 🙂
Cadry
Thanks! Yes, all of those veggies plus beans & potatoes makes it a meal on its own!
Sarah
So once upon a time I told Irving (on the phone) that I was making pot pie for dinner and he heard “pad Thai.” Ha! He was very confused when he came home and saw what we were really having! Pot Pie is a total favorite comfort food of mine—love this! And I agree, I love Bob’s Red Mill products—my pantry is completely full of their packages!
Cadry
Haha! Yes, you can’t get much more dissimilar than pot pie and pad Thai! No wonder he was confused.
Janis Ware
I made this tonight, and it is SO GOOD! I do not have little dishes so made it in a regular pie tin. It turned out really well. My husband mentioned how good it was at least three times! I grew up eating Swanson’s Chicken Pot Pies, and I am thrilled to have this delicious recipe to enjoy that is cruelty free and contains fresh ingredients. Thanks, Cadry!
Cadry
I’m so thrilled to hear this, Janis! I’m glad that you and your husband enjoyed it. It’s amazing how much “chicken” flavor is really all about the seasonings. I grew up eating pot pies too, and I love this cruelty-free version so much more for every reason. Thanks for letting me know, Janis!
Jenn
I love pot pie – such comfort food. These are so cute in their little individual dishes. Perfect for a gathering.
Cadry
Thanks, Jenn! I’ve been meaning to make a recipe that would utilize my Le Creuset mini cocotte collection for a long while now. They are just too cute!
Randi
These look awesome!!
Cadry
Thanks, Randi!
Mary Ellen @ VNutrition
This looks perfect for a post-shoveling dinner! We’re supposed to get a few inches here this weekend – my husband would love it if I made this for after we get that work out!
Magdalen
It looks delicious. I don’t make pastry but that filling would be very good with brown rice .
Cadry
Absolutely, Magdalen! If you don’t want to make pastry, you can just eat it as soup after incorporating the cashew cream. Just skip steps 10 to 13. Or you can use pre-made vegan pie dough to simplify. One of my other readers did that and said it was great. 😀
Magdalen
Next time I’ll put a crust on it. I served this for a late lunch for my husband, grown up children and myself today. It was a big hit and I’ll make it again soon . I did use fresh rosemary but the dried would have been fine. Thank you for this tasty and filling recipe.
Cadry
I’m so glad to hear that you and your family enjoyed it. Thanks for letting me know, Magdalen!
Kelly Taylor
This was AMAZING!!! It was one of the best recipes I have ever made – like ever. So delicious!!
My husband is from England, so he is very specific about his pot pie, and was not expecting to like this very much, and even he was raving (in a very English way of course 😉 ) — I don’t have small pots so I just added all to one larger pot and left in the over for 15 minutes extra and it was perfect!!
Vera
Thank you for this recipe we really enjoyed it!!
The pastry turned out so nice and flaky, it was a pleasure to look at and taste!! One of our new favorites.
Vera
Ooops, this wasn’t supposed to be a reply but a comment.
Cadry
I’m so happy to hear that, Vera! Thank you for letting me know!
Sandy
do you have yo use Bob’s red mill flower? And can I skip some ingredients? example I don’t like green peas or celery so I would skip them
Cadry
Any all purpose flour will be fine. And you can skip green peas and celery. However, I’d recommend putting in a cup of vegetables you do like to replace them. If you leave them out entirely, it will be saucier because those vegetables add some bulk.
Dena
Would pecans work instead of cashews? We have a dinner guest who is allergic to cashews. The pot pie will be for a different guest but I try to keep cashews totally out of my house.
Cadry Nelson
Yes, it’s best to be cautious. Allergies are serious business. I’ve never tried the recipe with pecans, but I don’t think it would work. The cashews add creaminess/body to the sauce, and pecans are a lot heavier/denser. Macadamia nuts or blanched almonds would probably work.
But what I would most likely do is make the sauce with a gravy instead, using all purpose flour as a thickener, like is standard in most pot pies.
Mix the two cups of vegetable broth or water in the recipe with about 1/4 cup of all-purpose flour. Heat it in the soup pot with the vegetables, stirring often, until it thickens. This will take about 10 minutes. For additional creaminess, stir in about 1/4 cup of your preferred plain non-dairy milk.
I haven’t tried the recipe this way, but it should work. Let me know how it goes if you try it!
Sascha
Those look sooooo yummy!
I’m thinking about making them for Xmas. Do you think I can make them the day before and just cook them on Xmas day or they would be fine if I just reheat them/finish cooking on Xmas day?
Cadry
Thanks, Sascha! I recommend making the filling and dough ahead of time, and then keeping them separate in the refrigerator. On Christmas Day, reheat the filling on the stove, roll out the dough, cut into circles, and bake everything fresh. Or if you’d rather do less work on Christmas Day, make them completely ahead of time, and then reheat on Christmas Day. Let me know how it goes!
Sascha
Thanks uou for the answer! I’ll let you know how it goes 😉
Laura
These pot pies were delicious! Thank you for the recipe. It was the perfect Christmas Eve dinner meal. Everyone loved it, even the non vegans. I doubled the dough so I could put dough on the bottom of the pie and sides. The vegan butter from Trader Joe’s was great for the pie crust.
Cadry
That’s so nice to hear, Laura! I’m thrilled that the pot pies were a hit with you and your guests.
Paul
I’ve been looking for a vegetarian pot pie recipe and your’s looks amazing! I am looking forward to trying it soon. I’m relatively new to cooking (beyond grilled cheese sandwiches) and have a few questions regarding the cookware I’m hoping you can help with:
1. Do the Le Creuset Mini Cocottes have 8oz capacity? They look beautiful, by the way.
2. In your experience, is 8oz large enough for a pot pie main meal (for most guys)? If not, what size would you recommend?
3. How would you rate the quality of the Le Creuset Mini Cocottes? Do they hold up well with respect to chipping, scratches etc.?
Thank you.
Paul
Cadry
Hi, Paul! Thanks for the kind words.
1. Yes, the mini cocottes have an 8 ounce capacity.
2. If you’re having the mini pot pie with other side dishes, it’s a nice size for one. If you have a big appetite or you’re eating it by itself, you may be happier with two of them. Did you notice that I also have a recipe for a full-sized version? If you made that, you could slice off the perfect sized portion to suit your hunger.
3. I’ve been really happy with my mini cocottes. I have them in a variety of colors, and they’ve all worn really well. No chips, no scratches. And I throw them in the dishwasher. Really convenient & sturdy!
Let me know how it goes, and happy cooking!
Andrea Loving
Is there a way to make the pies without cashews? My son is allergic to tree nuts. Thanks!
Cadry
Usually pot pie is made with gravy covering the vegetables. In this recipe, I make the gravy with a cashew cream basically. So you could go with the standard method instead, and do a combination of broth with flour as a thickener. When you get to the part of the recipe where you’d add the cashew cream, add two cups of vegetable broth that’s been whisked with about 1/4 cup of all-purpose flour. Heat it in the skillet, stirring often, until it thickens. This will take about 10 minutes. For additional creaminess, stir in about 1/4 cup of your preferred plain non-dairy milk. I haven’t tried the recipe this way, but it should work. Let me know how it goes if you try it!
Annaliese
This recipe is DELICIOUS!!!
I can only hope that those that commented on how adorable the pot pies look actually made them because they are so much more than that!
Thank you for making comfort food so wonderful!❤️
Cadry
I’m so happy you enjoyed it. Thanks for the great feedback!