Sweet Potato & Lentil Pot Pie

Just a quick thank you for your thoughts on my post about the events in Boston last week.  Following Fridays turn of events I no longer feel scared, but still have a heavy heart.  Bear with me as I try to get back into a blogging routine!


We may be well into spring, but this is a dish I'd eat anytime of year.  A chipotle-spiced mixture of sweet potatoes and lentils hides under a nice flaky crust.  If you need a little something to cool off from the spice, a cilantro-goat cheese dipping sauce works perfectly.

There's a little something else hiding in there- stout!  I used a breakfast stout brewed with oats, coffee and chocolate to complement the smoky chipotle in the filling and it worked out quite well.  Add in individual-sized portions, and this dinner was a winner all-around :)

Sweet Potato & Lentil Stout Pot Pie
inspired by Lindsay
Serves 4-6

For the pot pie:
2c low-sodium vegetable broth
1/2c black beluga lentils
3T unsalted butter, divided
1 onion, chopped
1 large sweet potato, 1/2" dice (4c)
1 chipotle in adobo, chopped
salt and black pepper, to taste
1 1/2T whole wheat pastry flour (or whatever you have on hand)
12oz stout (I used Founder's Breakfast Stout)
1/4c heavy cream  (I used almond milk with a little arrowroot mixed in)
1 sheet puff pastry, thawed in the fridge (1/2 package)

For the sauce:
1/4c creme fraiche
2oz goat cheese, crumbled
juice of 1/2 lime
2T almond milk (or whatever you have on hand)
1/2c packed cilantro leaves
salt and black pepper, to taste

Preheat oven to 375deg.

In a medium saucepan, add vegetable broth and bring to a simmer over medium heat.  Stir in lentils and reduce heat to medium low.  Cover and cook for 18-20min, until lentils are just al-dente.  Remove from the heat.

While the lentils are cooking, melt 1T butter in a large skillet over medium heat.  Add onion and cook until softened, ~4min.  Add sweet potato and chipotle and stir, cooking for another 5min.  Season with salt and pepper.  Add lentils and their cooking liquid, stir and continue cooking until liquid is mostly evaporated and sweet potatoes are just tender, ~3-5min.

In the same pot used to cook the lentils, melt the remaining 2T butter over medium heat.  Add flour and whisk until combined.  Continue whisking as you add in the beer, 1/4c at a time.  Finally, whisk in the heavy cream and remove from the heat.

Add the stout mixture to the sweet potatoes and lentils and mix well.  Transfer the mixture to a baking dish.  Top with puff pastry and gently fold along the edges of the baking dish.  (Depending on the size of your baking dish, you may need to roll out and cut your puff pastry.  I used two smaller baking dishes, each holding ~2 1/2c of the filling, and needed to roll out the pastry a little bit to make two squares large enough to cover the dishes.)  Brush the tops with milk or an egg wash, if desired.

Bake for 35-40min, or until the puff pastry is golden brown.  Remove from the oven and let cool at least 10min before serving.

For the sauce, add creme fraiche, goat cheese, milk, lime juice and cilantro to a blender or food processor and pulse until smooth and well combined.  Season to taste with a pinch of salt and some freshly ground black pepper.

Serve pot pies with sauce on the side.

Have you added any sort of spirit to your cooking or baking lately??