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OMG. I made pot pies!!
I know this may not seem like a big deal to most of you, but for me, it kind of is. I have never made a pot pie before.
Growing up we never ate pot pies for dinner, and in my few years of cooking I just never had the desire to make one. That is until I saw these pretty Staub cast iron mini cocottes, and it hit me that I really wanted to make a pot pie.
I am not joking when I say that the sole purpose I developed this pot pie recipe was because of the mini cocottes. I kind of fell in love with them and bought two on the spot, plus the cute pumpkin because I obviously had to have that too. No brainer.
I only bought two cocottes though because one, they are kind of expensive and two, the barn is going to suck me dry and I am trying to control the amount of dishes I buy… that part is clearly not going so well.
Speaking of the barn, things are finally happening. I have to say my mom/new general contractor is KILLING it. She has got people working back-to-back and our end of November/beginning of December deadline is looking just a little more do-able. Still going to be cutting it so close, but I am finally feeling good about it now. YA!
Ok, so I made these cute pot pies w/flakey taleggio crust using a mix of butternut squash, mushrooms and beef. I just have to say though, you can totally skip the beef and add more veggies in place, like peas or corn. I wanted to make a super hearty pot pie, but if beef is not your thing just leave it out. It’s honestly no big deal.
The butternut squash and mushrooms are the star in these pot pies anyway. Oh and that crust. Wow, that crust is delicious. Cheesy taleggio and puff pasty is a match made in pot pie heaven. Yep, pot pie heaven you guys.
I think that pot pies can sometimes be tough. One of the reasons I never made a classic pot pie is because I was fearful that they would be bland and boring. I think that the secret to a good pot pie is letting the stew cook as long as possible. I am not sure if you need to do this with a chicken pot pie, but it’s been my experience that low and slow is always the way to go when it comes to stews. So if you can, cook it all day and then assemble the pies when you get home from work or wherever.
It’s actually a really easy one-pot meal to make. Perfect for a busy week day or better yet a lazy Sunday when you want something cooking on the stove all day long to make the house smell amazing and feel super cozy.
Oh and I have to say, if you are trying to impress, I feel like this pot pie would be a good meal to make. It’s that pretty, golden and puffy crust that gets people every time. And I mean with good reason too. I think the crust it my favorite… it’s the puff pastry. That stuff is good.
Butternut Squash and Beefy Mushroom Pot Pies w/Flakey Taleggio Crust.
Ingredients
- 4 slices thick cut bacon, chopped (optional)*
- 2 1/2 pounds stew meat or short ribs, cubed into bite size pieces (optional)*
- 2 carrots, chopped
- 1 onion, chopped
- 2 cloves garlic, minced or grated
- 8 ounces of mushrooms, sliced (use 12 ounces if using no meat)
- 1 1/2-2 cups butternut squash, cubed (about 1/2 a small squash)
- 3 tablespoons butter
- 3 tablespoons flour
- 1/2 teaspoon salt + pepper
- 1 (12 ounce) beer, I used pumpkin beer
- 2 cups beef broth, plus as needed
- 2 teaspoons smoked paprika
- 1 teaspoon dried thyme + fresh thyme for stewing
- 1 teaspoon dried rosemary + fresh rosemary for stewing
- 1 teaspoon dried oregano
- 1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
- 1 bay leaf
- 1 sheet frozen puff pastry, thawed
- 6 ounces taleggio cheese, cubed
- 1 large egg, beaten
Instructions
- Heat a large dutch oven over medium heat. Once hot, add the bacon and cook until crisp. Remove from the pot and drain on a paper towel lined plate. To the same hot pot add the cubed beef and brown all over. Depending on the size of your dutch oven, you may need to brown the meat in batches. Once the meat is browned, remove it from the pot.
- If needed, add a drizzle of olive oil to the same pot you browned the meat in. Once hot, add the carrots, onions and garlic. Cook for 3-5 minutes or until soft. Toss in the mushrooms + butternut squash and continue to cook for 5 minutes. Add the beef back to the pot with veggies. Add the butter and flour, tossing well to coat all the veggies + meat. Season with salt and pepper. Cook one minute and then deglaze the pot with the beer, scrapping up any browned bits off the bottom of the pot. Add the beef broth, smoked paprika, thyme, rosemary, oregano, crushed red pepper and bay leaf. Bring the stew to a boil and then reduce the heat to a simmer. If desired you can add 2 sprigs of fresh thyme and rosemary(I did). Stir in the reserved bacon. Cover the pot and simmer for 2 1/2-4 hours, the longer the better. If you can, simmer the stew all day, it can be cooked up to six hours over low heat.
- When the stew is ready, remove from the heat and stir in the fresh parsley. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.
- Grease 6 mini ramekins (or just leave the stew in the oven safe pot you cooked it in and make one big pot pie). Divide the stew among the ramekins. Unroll the puff pasty and cut it into 6 squares. Sprinkle a little cheese over top each ramekin and then place the puff pastry over-top the cheese. Tuck the sides of the pastry down into the ramekins.
- Brush the tops of the pastry with the beaten egg and then sprinkle with the remaining cheese. Place the ramekins on a cookie sheet and bake for 35-45 minutes (maybe more or less depending on the size of your pot pies) or until the pastry is puffed and golden brown. Remove from the oven and sprinkle with fresh parsley and salt. Enjoy warm!
Notes
Nutrition
Nutritional information is only an estimate. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.
Did you make this recipe? Please rate & comment below.
That bite. Ohhhmmyyygoshhhh. That was a good bite.
I’ve never made pot pie either! These look incredible, love the taleggio crust!!
You would make a killer pot pie!! 🙂
I am not a mushroom person but these really look good.
So glad for you that Barn is coming along.
Thanks Nancy! You can sub the mushrooms with whatever you love it!
Your pot pies look delicious, I think they make a nice change from the traditional chicken pot pie. And the pictures are gorgeous!
Thank you so much! Have a great weekend!
Your mini cocettes are indeed adorable, however, for me, the big ol’ pumpkin dutch oven takes the cake!
Love the pumpkin too! Thanks Joshua!
i have never made pot pies before either but just because of those mini cocettes, i’d do it.
Haha! The cocettes have magic powers! 🙂
Those pot pies look so good and I love all of that melted cheese!
Thanks Kevin!
Those cast iron cocettes are so cute! So worth developing a recipe for 🙂
Thank you! have a great weekend!
That puff pastry looks sooo good! Now I’m totally craving this! Also, those cast-iron cocettes are incredible! Awesome prop find!
This looks incredible! Love those little pots too. I love pot pie and am putting this on my ‘to make’ list!
Omg, I LOVE Staub! It is my absolute favorite cast-iron cookware. I have a huge Dutch Oven of theirs, but have been eyeing those little cocettes for a while now. This recipe might be enough to convince me to add them to my registry. And that pumpkin!! Swoon. .
Staub is the best!! 🙂
Thanks Laura! Hope you had a great week! Oh and add it to your registry for sure!
This looks amazing. I could eat it for breakfast. Ok, lunch and dinner too. : ) Yum!
Thanks Brenda!
I found your blog through foodgawker and am completely obsessed! You rock girl!
Anyway, I know what you mean about kitchenware so amazing it prompts you to buy it and then make something just so you can use it. This is why my boyfriend is frightened when I go shopping. >0< But I've even gotten my ears pierced just so I can wear some dinosaur earrings I bought a week before, so I don't think this tendency can be suppressed . . .
Thanks for the delicious looking recipe~
-Aya
http://healthy-appetite.blogspot.de/
OMG! Thank you so much!
These look so good…I have that pumpkin dish and much like you have to keep my dish buying in check…there are worse addictions..lol….I love how cheesy and crispy the potpie tops look..
Thanks Lisa!! Hope you had a great week and have a fun weekend!
I love making pot pies – yours look so insanely delicious, I feel
like I can smell their amazingness through my screen!
Thanks Nora!
This looks so good! I might make a vegetarian version of this for a fancy weekend meal next weekend, when my parents come to visit.
It would be the perfect fancy meal for parents! Hope you all love it!