This vegetarian potpie could pass for a main course if you wanted it to, but it’s a stunning way to serve a side of hearty greens with a little drama.
I take time to prep and simmer the greens in heavy cream with thyme and garlic, and season them generously, but I suggest store-bought puff pastry to make preparing the dish quicker.
Creamed Greens Potpie
This one-skillet, vegetarian pot pie trades the traditional chicken filling for creamy, garlicky greens. Hearty greens turn silky in a mixture of heavy cream, garlic, shallot, thyme and Parmesan under a lid of flaky puff pastry. Using store-bought puff pastry in place of homemade pie crust ensures a perfect result every time. It also steers pot pie into the weeknight-possible category. Greens and heavy cream require a good amount of salt to taste like their best selves, so taste and season well when the recipe says to do so.
Makes 4 servings
3 tablespoons unsalted butter
10 garlic cloves, peeled and thinly sliced
1 shallot, peeled and finely chopped
1 tablespoon fresh thyme leaves (or 1 teaspoon dried thyme)
2½ pounds mixed hearty greens (like kale, spinach, mustard greens or collard greens), stems removed and leaves torn into large pieces
Kosher salt and black pepper
1 tablespoon all-purpose flour, plus more for rolling
2 cups heavy cream
1 teaspoon hot sauce
½ cup freshly grated Parmesan
1 sheet frozen puff pastry, thawed
1 egg, beaten
Heat the oven to 400 degrees and line a baking sheet with parchment or foil.
In a medium (10-inch) oven-proof skillet over medium heat, melt the butter. Add the garlic, shallot and thyme and cook, stirring occasionally, until softened but not browned, 5 to 6 minutes.
Add a handful of the greens and season lightly with salt and pepper. Using tongs, toss the greens in the butter until wilted. Repeat, making sure to season each batch, until all the greens are added and wilted. (They will eventually all fit.)
Stir in the flour until it disappears into the greens, then add the cream and hot sauce and stir well to combine. Bring to a simmer, then remove from heat and stir in the Parmesan. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
On a lightly floured work surface or the bottom of another baking sheet, use a lightly floured rolling pin, roll and trim the puff pastry into a 12-inch circle. If you find the pastry contracts when you roll it, give it a few minutes between each roll to relax a little.
Transfer the skillet to the lined baking sheet. Drape the puff pastry over the skillet so that there is about ½-inch hang over on all sides. (Trim any sides that have more than an inch.) Brush the beaten egg onto the puff pastry, then cut four large slits into the pastry. Bake until the puff pastry is puffed and golden brown, about 10 minutes. Reduce the oven temperature to 375 degrees and bake until the pastry is cooked through and the filling is bubbling, 30 to 35 minutes. (If the pastry is getting too dark, cover with foil.) Let sit for a few minutes before diving in.
Slagle is a freelance writer and cookbook author. This article appeared in The New York Times.
