Savory Pies for Winter Evenings

by Wendy Gordon

Savory pies require some time and effort, but they smell delicious while baking and make a satisfying winter meal. A regular pastry crust (skip the sugar) works fine. If you're not fond of rolling pastry or are short on time you can substitute a prebaked shell.

The quiche is your basic savory pie. This simple recipe was a favorite of mine in the 70s. It still has a retro appeal.

Seafood Quiche

• 2 T. minced shallots
• 1 T. butter
• 1 cup seafood (shredded crab meat or salmon work well)
• 1 T. flour
• 1 1/2 cups coarsely shredded Swiss cheese, divided
• 3 eggs
• 1 cup half and half
• Dash of hot pepper sauce
• Salt to taste
• Dash of nutmeg
• 2 T. minced fresh parsley
• 1 9 inch pre-baked pastry shell

1. Sauté shallots in butter until tender, about two minutes. Mix with seafood and flour. Set aside.
2. The seafood should be baked before going into the quiche. Bake the crab meat or salmon until slightly puffed and clean in the center when pricked with a toothpick - half an hour, more or less.
3. Sprinkle half the cheese in the pie shell, then spread with crab mixture. Sprinkle with remaining cheese.
4. Beat eggs, cream, parsley and flavorings until mixed but not frothy. Pour into shell.
5. Bake in a preheated 350 degree F oven.

This Moroccan chicken pie is a lot more work, but it's different and delicious.

Basteeya

• 1/3 cup and 2 T. olive oil
• 1 large onion, chopped
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 tsp. red pepper flakes
• 1 cinnamon stick
• 1 tsp. curry powder
• 1 tsp. fresh ginger, minced
• 1 tsp. lemon zest, grated
• 4 cooked chicken legs, with bones removed and meat chopped coarsely
• 1/4 cup dried apricots, finely chopped
• 1/4 cup green olives (the Sicilian kind are great), finely chopped
• 1/2 cup chicken stock
• Juice of half a lemon
• Salt and pepper to taste
• 1 T. confectioner's sugar
• 2 T. toasted almonds, slivered
• 1/2 tsp. cinnamon
• 8 sheets phyllo dough
• 1 egg, lightly beaten
• 2 T. cilantro, minced

1. Brush a deep 10-inch pie plate with melted butter and set aside.
2. In a large skillet over medium-high heat, sauté the onions until soft in the 2 T. olive oil. Add the garlic, red pepper flakes, cinnamon stick, curry powder, fresh ginger, lemon zest and chicken. Sauté for two minutes.
3. Stir in the apricots, olives, salt and pepper, chicken stock and lemon juice. Bring to a boil.
4. Reduce the heat to low, cover and simmer for 10 minutes. Remove the lid and simmer until the liquid has evaporated. Remove the cinnamon stick and allow to cool.
5. In a separate bowl, combine the sugar, ground cinnamon and almonds. Set aside.
6. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.
7. Once the chicken mixture has cooled completely, begin assembly. On a good work surface, arrange a sheet of phyllo, keeping the remaining phyllo sheets slightly damp under a gently moistened towel. Brush it with olive oil. Lay this sheet of phyllo in the middle of the pie plate, letting the excess hang over the edge. Repeat with 4 more sheets of phyllo.
8. Stir the egg and cilantro into the chicken mixture, then spoon the entire mixture into the pie plate on top of the phyllo.
9. Fold the phyllo edges that are hanging over the pie plate back in one sheet at a time, sprinkling the almond mixture between each layer.
10. Oil one sheet of the remaining phyllo and sprinkle with some of the almond mixture. Place sheet over filling and tuck in any overhang. Repeat with remaining phyllo sheets and almond mixture.
11. Bake in oven for 20 minutes, or until the top is browned and crisp.

This is far and away the best vegetarian version of Shepherd's Pie I've had (believe me, there are some bad ones out there). It takes some work, but is well worth it!

Vegetarian Shepherd's Pie

Potatoes:

• 3 pounds of potatoes, peeled
• 2/3 cup vegetable broth
• 2 T. butter
• 1/2 cup milk, plus a little more if needed to thin topping
• 4 tsp. curry powder
• 2 tsp. ground turmeric
• 4 cloves garlic, minced
• Salt and pepper to taste

Vegetables:

• 1/4 cup butter
• 1 cup carrots, peeled and thinly sliced
• 1 large onion, chopped
• 2 1/2 cups mushrooms, chopped
• 1 1/2 cups green beans, halved
• 1/4 cup brandy
• Salt and pepper to taste

Sauce:

• 2 cups vegetable broth
• 4 T. flour
• 1/4 cup brandy
• 2 T. Worcestershire sauce
• 1 T. fresh parsley, chopped
• 1 T. dried or fresh rosemary, minced
• 2 T. dried or fresh sage leaves, minced

1. Peel potatoes and cut into one-inch slices. Put in a pot, add salted water to cover and cook until tender. Drain.
2. Melt butter in a large skillet. Starting with the onions and carrots, sauté vegetables until tender. Add brandy, salt and pepper. Remove vegetables with slotted spoon and reserve.
3. Whisk flour into remaining vegetable liquid, adding some of the vegetable broth if necessary. Cook over medium-low heat until a thick smooth paste forms, whisking constantly. Slowly add the remaining broth, continuing to whisk (you can add more broth if sauce is too thick) and cook for one minute. Add brandy, Worcestershire sauce, parsley, rosemary and sage. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Cook, whisking constantly, until sauce thickens, about five minutes.
4. Add vegetables back to the skillet. Set aside.
5. Mash potatoes with vegetable broth, milk, curry, turmeric, garlic and salt and pepper to taste.
6. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
7. Spoon half the potatoes into a lightly oiled 9x13 baking pan. Spread the vegetable mixture evenly on top of the potatoes. Spread the rest of the potatoes over the vegetables, adding milk if needed to make the potatoes spreadable. You can make decorative swirls in the potatoes, if you like!
8. Bake for 30 minutes or until potatoes are browned and casserole is bubbly. Let sit for 15 minutes before serving.