Simple, Seasonal, Festive

Season's eatings are getting pretty slim so here's the time to celebrate root vegetables. They're festively colorful, insanely nutritious, simple to prepare and delicious. Here for the holidays is a great way to showcase them: a Root Vegetable Potpie.  The recipe is in my briskly selling, five-star rated book: Veggiyana, the Dharma of Cooking, Wisdom Publications, 2011. Enjoy this alone with a raw kale salad, also seasonal. Or serve it beside fried chicken or the traditional holiday ham.

ROOT VEGETABLE POTPIE

Serves 6-8

1 lg onion, peeled

1 small rutabaga, peeled and coarsely chopped into bite-sized pieces

1 white turnip, peeled and chopped into bite-sized pieces

3 carrots, peeled and cut crosswise into 1” pieces

1 parsnip, peeled and cut into ½” disks

1 sweet potato, peeled and sliced into thin disks

1 leek, washed and cut into ½” disks

1 sm daikon, peeled and cut into thin disks

1 small celeriac bulb, peeled and coarsely chopped

6 purple or red round potatoes, washed and quartered

1 shallot, peeled and thinly sliced

2” piece of fresh ginger, peeled and minced

4 lg garlic cloves, peeled and minced

½ tsp ground turmeric (this is a rhizome)

3 tbsp olive or peanut (a ground nut) oil

1 tsp salt

¼ tsp ground chipotle powder or smoked paprika

2 tsp dried marjoram leaves

1 tsp ground coriander (this is the root of the plant)

1/8 tsp ground black pepper

1 ½ cups vegetable broth or water

½ cup chopped tomatoes

½ cup fresh parsley sprigs, chopped

 FOR THE CRUST

1 cup dried polenta meal

½ cup buttermilk

1 tsp salt

2 tbsp plus 1 tsp butter

¼ cup grated parmesan, romano or asiago cheese

4 cups water

pinch of nutmeg

Slice the onion into thin disks, slice each disk in half and then in half again.

Heat the oil in a large casserole or small soup pot over medium heat.  Add the garlic, ginger, black pepper and turmeric and stir-fry for 30 seconds. Add the shallot slices, onion and leek. Sauté for 3-5 minutes until soft. They will be colored by the turmeric.

Stir in ground coriander, chipotle or smoked paprika and marjoram. Put remaining root vegetables in the pot. Add salt and broth or water. Raise heat to a boil. Cover, lower heat to simmer and cook 20 minutes.

Preheat an oven to 350.  Get a large ovenproof casserole or deep-dish pie pan.

In a large saucepan, boil the 4 cups of water and salt. Stir in polenta and 2 tbsp of butter and stir rapidly to blend, so the polenta doesn’t lump up.  Continue stirring and cooking the polenta for 4-5 minutes, until it starts to release large bubbles.  Remove from heat and stir in buttermilk.

Stir tomatoes and chopped parsley into the vegetables.

Fill the casserole or pie dish with the vegetables and their juice, leaving about ¼” at the top. Using a large kitchen spoon, spoon the polenta over the top to create a crust, up to ½” thick is okay. Be sure to cover the edges and smooth the top.

Cut the tsp of butter into tiny pieces and scatter on top of the cooked polenta. Sprinkle on the cheese and the pinch of nutmeg.

Put the potpie in the center of the oven and put a large cookie sheet on the rack below it to catch any spills.  Cook for 20-30 minutes, until the top vaguely starts to brown and crisp.  Remove and let it cool for 5-10 minutes before serving.