Vegan Pot Pie with Filo Crust

This easy vegan pot pie is the perfect comfort food classic made with veggies and creamy vegan béchamel sauce enveloped in a flaky filo crust.

Course Main Course

Cuisine American, European

Prep Time 10

Cook Time 50

Total Time 1

Servings servings

Calories 204kcal

Cost $8

Take the frozen filo out of the freezer at least an hour before beginning.
Start by making the filling. Cut the veggies in small pieces and small florets. Make sure they are roughly the same size. Then cook the broccoli, carrots, leeks and mushrooms in a large skillet with a lug of olive oil and salt, over medium-high heat until softened for five to seven minutes. Add the thyme and green peas in the end and cook for one more minute until warm.

Make the béchamel (directly over the veggies). Add the oil and the flour over the veggies, mix, let it cook for a minute or two, then add the nut milk and mix until it thickens into a béchamel, about 2-4 minutes. You can add more nut milk to thin it up to your preferred consistency. Once the veggies are set in their creamy béchamel, turn off the heat and add the almonds, the mustard, salt and pepper to taste. Reserve.

Start by having a big piece of baking paper on a large enough working space (easier to move the filo with the paper later on). Add 3 slightly overlapping (lengthside) filo sheets for the base making a big rectangle, then spray with cooking spray or brush a light layer of olive oil and repeat the step with 3 other sheets over the previous ones. Keep going until you have used all the filo. In the end you should have a big rectangle of 4 layers.

Add the filo in the center of a baking dish of your choice (I use a 30 cm (12 inch) circular ceramic baking pan about 5 cm (2 inch) high) with the help of the underneath baking paper. Once the filo is well centered and pushed down into the pan, add the filling. Cover it with the sides of the filo until the filling is well covered. Give a last spray of olive oil and salt on top of the pie before closing it up with the baking paper. This step prevents the top of the pie from burning. Add a metal fork or any oven proof element on top of the baking paper to prevent it from going up.

Bake in the oven on the lower level, at 180°C (350F) for 30 minutes or until the filo is lightly golden. Let cool down for 5 minutes before serving. Enjoy!

Top Tips

This pot pie is a vegan version of a comfort food classic chicken pot pie that is hearty and nutrient-dense.
If you are using frozen filo pastry, take it from the freezer at least an hour before beginning.
Serve it on its own, with a salad, soup (like this vegan zuppa Toscana) or with roasted brussels sprouts and butternut squash or quick pan seared balsamic glazed brussels sprouts.
Store leftovers for up to 4 days in the fridge. To reheat, put it in the oven until heated through, for about 15 minutes. You can also microwave it but the bottom can get a bit soggy.
Use leftover filling for other recipes like this vegan quinoa fried rice.

Try different vegetables depending on the season, like spinach in the fall, asparagus in the spring, or zucchini in the summer.
For a non-vegan, more butter option you can use a traditional pie crust. Alternative, consider making this homemade vegan pie crust.
Experiment with adding other herbs for a subtle change in flavor.
You can use roasted garlic sauce instead of vegan bechamel for a more intense flavor.
Substitute oat milk or any nut milk for almond milk.
Create individual pot pies by using smaller ramekins that you have on hand.
If you want more of a crunch you can use the slivered type of almonds or even slightly blend them in a processor.