Slow-Cooker Southwestern Pot Pie (Vegetarian)

Podkayne's Note:

Meatless but very flavorful. This is hard-core comfort food! Also very easy to make. Adapted from "Fresh from the Vegetarian Slow Cooker" by Robin Robinson. Serve with your favorite salsa, and a dab of sour cream, if you like. Like many reviewers, I don't particularly like the topping, so I substitute another cornbread made from another recipe, or from 1 box of Jiffy cornbread mix.

• Total Time: 6 hrs 30 mins
• Prep Time: 30 mins
• Cook Time: 6 hrs

Ingredients:

Servings: 4

• 2 tablespoons light olive oil, divided
• 1 teaspoon light olive oil
• 1 small onion, chopped
• 1 medium carrot, chopped
• 1 bell pepper, chopped
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 cup frozen corn kernels
• 3 cups cooked pinto beans (or 2 15.5-oz cans of pinto beans, drained)
• 1 jalapeno chile, minced (remove the seeds and white ribs for a milder "hot")
• 3/4 cup vegetable stock
• 1 tablespoon tamari or 1 tablespoon other soy sauce
• 2 tablespoons fresh cilantro, chopped
• salt and pepper
• 1/2 cup cornmeal
• 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 cup milk or 1/2 cup soymilk

Directions:

1. The beans can be prepared in the slow cooker! The night before you wish to make the pot pie, pick and rinse 1/2 lb of dry beans, put them in the slow cooker with water to cover plus one inch, and cook them on Low overnight. In the morning, the cooked beans are ready to drain and use in this (or any!) recipe.
2. In a skillet over medium heat, saute the onion and carrot about 5 minutes, until softened.
3. Lightly oil a 3 1/2 - 4 quart slow cooker with 1 tsp oil.
4. Transfer the onions and carrot to the cooker, and add the bell pepper, garlic, corn, pinto beans, and chiles.
5. Stir in the stock, tamari, and cilantro.
6. Cool on Low for 5 hours.
7. Add salt and pepper to taste.
8. Make the topping: In a separate bowl, combine the cornmeal, flour, baking powder, and baking soda, and mix well. Add the remaining 1 Tbsp oil and the milk (for vegan use the soy milk), and mix until just combined.
9. Place the topping on top of the filling, turn the cooker up to High, and cook for 1 hour more.

Reviews

[Brighid]

This was a huge hit! Made a few changes for personal preference...I used black bean and only half the amount, used a can of diced green chilies for the jalepeno and, probably, more carrot than the recipe called for because I used baby carrots (and it's hard to convert those!) I also added several dashed of cumin and a layer of shredded sharp cheddar cheese before I added the cornmeal topping. The only part I didn't care for was the topping so next time I'm going to double the mixture, add more cheese and use my favorite cornbread recipe instead of the cornmeal mix. Thanks for a new favorite!!

[Annie Dangerous]

This was yummmmy and I'm sure it's awesome as it's shown, but like everyone else I made changes! Since I was making it to have for weekday lunches, I skipped the cornbread topping in case it didn't keep well. I added a couple more carrots, a couple more jalapenos, a can of chopped chilis and a can of diced tomatoes. I divided it out into lunch containers over a bed of rice. Thanks for sharing! i like finding vegetarian crockpot recipes that aren't chili!

[tamalita62]

Oh my gosh! this is wonderful! I've never made a topping in the crock pot and was so surprised at how it turned out. This was good the first night, but the second night it tasted like a tamale!