Mushroom and Sundried Tomato Pesto Pie with Parmesan and Black Pepper Crust

Mushroom and Sundried Tomato Pesto Pie with Parmesan and Black Pepper Crust. A rich, hearty mushroom gravy enriched with sundried tomato pesto is tucked inside a golden brown parmesan and black pepper pie crust. This is a perfect vegetarian take on the classic pot pie, and is ultimate comfort food. Mushroom pot pie will be your next favourite!

Hi! Happy Sunday! I am sharing a recipe with you today that is somewhat inspired by my trip to New Zealand in February (so glad we went back when we did) - this Mushroom and Sundried Tomato Pesto Pie with a Parmesan and Black Pepper Crust!

Savoury pies are a big thing in New Zealand - they are sold at every bakery and petrol station, and are a hangover staple in my opinion. We weirdly don’t have many fruit pies - if you asked someone if they wanted a pie, they would know you were referring to a small hand held pie filled with a savoury (usually meat) filling. Different bakeries are known for their flavour combinations and people will travel for their favourite. There is a place about a 15 minute drive from my Parent’s we went to a bunch of times when we were home, because they are THAT good.

I’m not quite sure why savoury pies (excluding pot pie) haven’t caught on as well in the states, but I can truthfully say that the States are missing out, because we sure do know our way around a good pie in New Zealand.

We actually don’t eat much meat at home now, so when I was working on this, I really wanted to come up with a vegetarian version to share. We have been getting mushrooms from a small company here in Brooklyn since lockdown started, and so I had a bunch of different varieties in my fridge to use up. I started by frying off the mushrooms in batches to get them nice and golden brown, then parked them in a bowl and seasoned well. I then worked on a gravy of sorts - frying onions and garlic in butter (aka the ‘what smells good’ trio), and then adding flour to the pan, followed by some stock and heavy cream, and some soy sauce for extra flavour. The mix then got cooked until it was a thick gravy, pesto was added, and then the mushrooms got added back in, and the whole thing mixed together. Super easy - it does take a wee bit of chopping of the onions and the garlic, but it is so worth it. I wrapped the whole thing up in a super flaky pie crust, which I made with some parmesan and black pepper for a super delicious savoury twist on traditional pie dough.

Because I kept this pie veggie I knew I would have to work a little harder to get a super rich gravy, and I leaned on a few things to achieve this. The first trick was making sure that the mushrooms were super golden brown, adding depth of flavour and helping to cook out the moisture. Next I added in some soy sauce to the gravy, which helped with the umami, but the real flavour star here in the pie is Sundried Tomato Pesto. Just so, so good.

This pie is ultimate comfort food and would make the perfect weekend meal. You can split up the work over a few days if you like (see notes), and leftovers are so delicious. We serve it alongside a super simple salad, but it would really go well with anything. Enjoy! xx

A few wee tips:

• I like using a wee tip that my friend Erin taught me to make the pie dough nice and smooth and easy to work with. I make the dough, shape it into two rectangles, rest it in the fridge wrapped for about an hour, then remove it and roll it out into a rectangle on a lightly floured surface. I then give it a letter fold (as you would a letter), roll out to a rectangle, letter fold again, then roll out slightly, and shape into a disc. I then re-wrap it, and leave it to rest overnight. This makes the dough more homogenous without compromising the flaky texture that you want in the pie dough, and it makes it a total dream to work with. For me, it’s a game changer.

• I used a bunch of different mushrooms! Whatever you have will work but I loved the mix of portobello, crimini, and shiitake.

• 1kg of mushrooms seems like loads. It looks like loads, but they shrink down so much when fried off, so just trust me with this one.

• I also made a homemade mushroom stock using some dried porcini and crimini mushrooms that I had - I simmered them in some water for about an hour then left them in the liquid for another 30 minutes, along with a parmesan rind, some garlic, peppercorns, and thyme. There’s so much going on flavour wise that you don’t have to do this, veggie stock will work just fine!

• This is a vegetarian pie, but if you like, you can add a little bacon in when you are cooking the onion and garlic down. Totally up to you!

• in saying that Parmesan isn’t actually vegetarian so if you need to keep it strictly veggie you can switch out the cheese in the crust to a veggie cheese - something hard is best.

• If you don’t want to make your own dough, you can use store bought pie dough and it will work just fine! Making your own is a fun and easy project - if you like you can make double and wrap some tightly and freeze.

• The filling for this pie can be made ahead if you like to break up the tasks. I made the dough and the filling the day before which made it nice and easy to pop together for dinner!

• lattice this however you like - I did a “slattice” where I just laid down the strips over the filling rather than weaving them, then made some cut-outs using pie crust cutters!

• The pie needs about an hour 15 in the oven to get nicely cooked so make sure you account for that!

• The pie will hold its filling nicely if you leave it to cool, but it is best eaten hot, so you choose your own adventure - I prefer it hot!

• This pie is GREAT On the reheat (we have had it four times in the last two weeks). You can either refresh it in the oven which helps keep the pastry crisp, or pop it in the microwave.

Mushroom and Sundried Tomato Pesto Pie with Parmesan and Black Pepper Crust

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• Author: Erin Clarkson
• Prep Time: 45 minutes
• Cook Time: 60 minutes
• Total Time: 1 hour 45 minutes plus chilling and cooling time
• Yield: 8-10 Slices 1x

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Description

Mushroom and Sundried Tomato Pesto Pie with Parmesan and Black Pepper Crust. A rich, hearty mushroom gravy enriched with sundried tomato pesto is tucked inside a golden brown parmesan and black pepper pie crust. This is a perfect vegetarian take on the classic pot pie, and is ultimate comfort food. Mushroom pot pie will be your next favourite!

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Ingredients

Scale 1x2x3x

Parmesan and Black Pepper Pie Crust

• 375g (2 ½ cups) all-purpose flour
• Pinch of Salt
• ½ tsp freshly ground black pepper (about 15 turns of the pepper mill)
• 50g (¼ cup) freshly grated parmesan cheese (finely grated)
• 225g (2 sticks) cold unsalted butter, cut into cubes
• 240g (1 cup) cold water
• 1 cup ice
• 60g (¼ cup) Apple cider vinegar

Mushroom and Sundried Tomato Pesto Filling

• Neutral Oil such as sunflower or vegetable for frying mushrooms
• 1000g Mushrooms (I used a mix of shiitake, portobello and crimini), chopped or torn into pieces or cubes.
• 70g unsalted butter
• 1 medium onion, finely chopped
• 5 cloves garlic, minced
• 75g all-purpose flour
• 360g vegetable or mushroom stock
• 120g heavy cream
• 2 Tbsp soy sauce
• 100g sundried tomato pesto
• 1 Tbsp fresh thyme or 2 tsp dried thyme
• Egg wash - 1 egg whisked with 1 tablespoon water

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Instructions

PIE DOUGH

1. Place flour, salt, pepper, and parmesan into a large bowl. Cut butter into chunks, and add to the flour. Toss lightly to coat. Working quickly, using a pastry blender or  your fingers,  cut the butter into the flour mixture until there are only large pea-sized chunks left. You want a few lumps of butter remaining to keep the pastry nice and tender.
2. Combine ice, water and cider vinegar in a bowl. Sprinkle a few tablespoons of the ice water into the flour and butter mixture, and using a stiff spatula or your hands, mix in well. Continue adding water a tablespoon at a time ( I normally need about 8-10 tbsp) until you have a dough that holds together well, but is not too wet.
3. Squeeze together with your fingertips to make a homogenous dough. Shape one into a disc and one into a rectangle, and wrap in plastic wrap. Rest in the fridge for at least two hours, or preferably overnight.  (See notes for rolling out dough during resting period)

MUSHROOM FILLING

1. Heat a glug of oil in a large frying pan or skillet over medium high heat. Add about a third of the mushrooms, and cook, stirring occasionally, until golden brown. Remove and transfer to a bowl. Season with salt and pepper. Repeat the process in two more batches with the remaining mushrooms until all are cooked.
2. Lower the heat to medium and add the butter. Add the onion and garlic, and cook, stirring frequently, until the onion is translucent. Add the flour and stir to incorporate, then add the stock, cream, and soy sauce, and cook over medium heat, stirring often, until the sauce has thickened.
3. Remove from the heat and add in the tomato pesto and thyme. Add the cooked mushrooms and stir to incorporate and to ensure the mushrooms are covered in the sauce. The filling will seem thick. Taste and adjust for seasoning if needed.
4. Transfer to a container allow to cool to room temperature. This filling can be made up to a few days ahead and stored in an airtight container in the fridge.

ASSEMBLY

1. On a lightly floured surface, roll the disc into a circle slightly larger than your pie dish. You want it to be approximately ⅛ inch (3mm) in thickness. Line a 9" pie dish, leaving the extra dough overhanging. Trim the dough so there is about 1 inch overlapping the edge of your dish.
2. Place in the fridge while you prepare the lattice.
3. Roll out the second piece of dough (the rectangle) into a rough rectangle approximately ⅛ inch thick. Use a pastry cutter to cut strips for your lattice.
4. Add the cooled filling to the lined pie dish, spreading down slightly with a spoon or spatula. Lattice the top (I did a very simple pattern and laid the strips down), and either cut the lattice flush with the edge of the pie, or fold the edges over and crimp as desired.
5. Rest the pie in the fridge for at least 30 minutes. While the pie is resting in the fridge, preheat the oven to 425°f/ 220°c. Place a baking tray on the bottom rack of the oven.
6. Brush the pie with egg wash. Bake at 425˚f / 220˚c for 20 minutes, or until the pastry is set and beginning to go golden. Reduce the temperature 375°f / 190°c, and bake until the pastry is deeply golden and the filling is bubbling, 40 to 50 minutes.
7. Remove from the oven and cool on a wire rack.
8. Store leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge, and re-warm in the oven before serving.

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