Chickpea and Leek Pie

Last Thursday I woke up with the best of intentions to write an amazing recipe for the blog and to be really productive all day long. Like all good intentions, I didn't do any of this. I started to feel quite unwell and ended up spending most of the day in bed. However my night in shining armour came to the rescue and slaved away in the kitchen, coming up with a new recipe, that was warm and hearty and perfect for a poorly vegan. So thank you very much Jamie for this autumnal pie!

Jamie chose to veganise the traditional Chicken and leek pot pie and it was delicious and a ton healthier than the meat version. Chickpeas, also known as garbanzo beans, are a form of legume, a staple within the vegan diet. They are nutritionally dense, being high in protein, dietary fibre, folate and iron and phosphorous. And they make hummus! They are a super food for that alone.

The pastry Jamie used was a vegan gluten free pre-made pastry from jus-rol he found in Sainsbury's. It was in the refrigerated section with the vegan cheese. If you don't require gluten free pastry some of jus-rol's other pastries are also vegan. Or you can give your own pastry a go.*

veg would go perfectly on the side.

With the cold dark nights drawing in I can see myself eating these pies all winter long. They warm your heart, soul and belly!

Makes 3 Pies

Ingredients

3 leeks

2 white onions (medium sized)

1 red onion (medium sized)

1 can of chickpeas

2 tablespoons vegan butter

1 tablespoon dried rosemary

1 tablespoon dried thyme

Salt

Pepper

1 pint of vegan stock

3 teaspoons of corn flour

1 sheet of vegan gluten free pastry (I used this one)*

Method

1) Drain the chickpeas and place on a tray. Roast in the oven for 25 minutes at 200'c.

2) Dice the onions and leeks. Fry the onions in a large pan, once slightly translucent add the leeks. Fry the leeks and onions until soft.

3) Add the vegan butter, the herbs and season with salt and pepper.

4) Add the vegan stock. Make a paste with the corn flour and a small amount of water, and add to the pan. Bring to the boil, then reduce the heat and simmer.

5) Once the chickpeas are roasted add to the leeks and onions and remove from the heat.

6) Cut 3 pie lids from the pastry, slightly bigger than the dishes you intend to serve from.

7) Place the pie filling in the dishes. Put pastry lids on top of filling and make sure to make a small whole in the lid to allow steam to escape.

8) Place in the oven for 25-30 minutes, until pastry is golden brown and crispy. Who ate all the pies?!

* Side note: I looked at the ingredients after and realised the jus-rol pastry contains palm oil, something I try my best to avoid and would advocate others trying to do to. Unfortunately it is present in a lot of vegan products. So I may up date this recipe in the future with an additional pastry recipe, I'll let you know when I've worked that out!

Jamie served the pie with sweet potato mash and broccoli. But any traditional autumn