Barbecue Pie Recipe

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Directions

First off, I should mention that there are no set amounts in this recipe. Just use whatever you have handy. It's good for using up leftovers. If you need starter amounts consider:Ingredients (use vegan versions):One large onionEight ounces/225g mushrooms (baby button 'shrooms are especially nice)One medium leek (careful, they're strong)Two carrots, cut fineKidney beans, butter beans, navy beans (the baked beans are a necessary ingredient)You should get the idea, just nice, medium amounts which will fill a deep pie dish. Remember to use enough potatoes to give it a good top layer of mash. I think we used around a pound of them, but don't quote me. Anyway, on to the recipe, with suitable anecdotes.Soon after I arrived in England this summer for an all-too-short visit, Stu decided to make a barbecue pie for me. First thing he got me to do (slavedriver ;) was scrub and cube the unpeeled potatoes and set them boiling in lightly salted water. While those were slowly cooking we cut the veggies up into bite-sized pieces. Tiny mushrooms we kept whole ("Ooh! Baby shrooms! Cuuuuute..." *melting voice*adorable grin*little mushroom almost shoved up my nose*). Onion chopped, check. Mushrooms suitably tossed around, check. Stepped on cat, check ("MMROW!" "Well, don't lay right behind me, Puss!"). At this point he pulled out his handy-dandy fry-pan, and set it on to heat. I usually realised that the leek was gritty and got to work separating the rings in a bowl of water to get it rinsed out.Anyway, we heated a bit of oil in the pan, just enough to keep things from sticking, and began to cook the veggies. Onions (including leek) and mushrooms go in first, then carrots and other hard veggies. Let them soften a bit in the pan and add the baked beans, a can of sweetcorn, whatever other beans are handy, soymince or textured soy protein (HYDRATED!) if you want 'em ("Ew..." "Quiet, Carnivore Boy." "MMROWR!" "You too, Cat."), and a LOT of barbecue sauce. See? Easy. Even the cat can help!About the time the veggie-bean glop is about cooked through, test the potatoes. If a knife goes through them with no force, they're ready to be mashed. If the knife gets stuck a few millimetres in and produces sparks, that's a rock. Take it out and try again. But, yeah, mash the tatties with a bit or marg/oil, maybe some soymilk if it's too solid, and mix in some salt and pepper and maybe some basil or garlic or mint. Trust me, mint in potatoes, if you can get the right balance, is fantastic. (*prideful look from Stu* "I'm SO good." "Yes you are, hon. Your beans are burning.") Get the bean goop off the flame before it manages to burn or bubble AALLLLL over the stove. Dump it in a deep pie dish or similar deep oven-safe dish. Make sure the oven is heated to 200C/400F. Now, let Stu be artistic and spread the mash over the veg mix until he's covered it with decourative fork furrows and quite possibly his name. ("See? It's my name! I'm so great." "BARK!" "Oh, no, not the dog too...") Bung it in the oven for maybe half an hour until the tatties start turning brown and the pie is hot through. Use this time to give your cooking partner a shoulder rub, or shut up the small and deafening dogTake the pie out of the oven, let Stu panic over the burn on your hand and spoil you for a while, cut great bits from the pie, and munch on it in front of the TV. ("No... not 'Neighbours'... NO!!!!!!!!!!!" *cue terrifying theme song*) Follow up dinner with getting Cat out of the rest of the pie, cleaning up, and rejoicing as the soaps go off.This is one of my fave dishes now (Stu would be happy to never see another one, as often as I begged him to make it), quite easy to make, gives you a few minutes to rest while it's baking, nutritious, and cheap. And the dog likes it, too! ("Bag dog! My dinner!" *pitiful look from dog* "Oh, okay, one bite...")