Here’s your holiday main dish sorted. I first made this vegan holiday pie for friends at Thanksgiving and it was phenomenal, and so pretty.
It’s a perfect Christmas (or Easter, Thanksgiving, or any gathering) meal. I always find the plant based options so boring – nut loaf (yuck), soy-based, or sort of everyday things like regular shepherd’s pie and lasagne. When I was still eating dairy it was a bit easier, but I always felt terrible afterwards.
The thing is, there should be a dramatic holiday main dish too! Isn’t it always so disappointing when it seems like the vegetarian dishes for holidays are all just sides? It ends up being a bit like a mezze, which is great, but I’ve always wanted an option that’s definitely a main, like the big centrepiece. This dish evokes the same feelings as the goose, or whatever holiday main, you grew up with.
A great thing about this pie is that although it is a savoury vegan pie, it’s not just grains and starches. The filling is all vegetables and lentils so you’re not packing in potatoes and nothing else.
To me, it’s cozy, comforting food that I want during the colder months and holiday season, but not uncomfortable to eat a big portion of. If you’re concerned that it might be a bit complicated, it really isn’t.
I always make the filling the night beforehand so all that’s needed the day of is to make the crust and bake it. The only slightly tricky bit is that you may not be familiar with the method used to make the crust, because it’s hot water pastry.
It’s the opposite of a standard pastry, which should be kept as cold as possible. The pie needs a really sturdy, crispy crust to hold everything in and hot water pastry is the only real option for that. You end up with a lovely crispy outside and the filling is a bit like a lentil shepherd’s pie.
Vegan Hot Water Pastry
I first saw a hot water pastry on Great British Bake Off but they were real sticklers about the pie being made on the outside of a pan (hand raising), and I suppose the British are nothing if not keepers of tradition, but it’s really not necessary.
It’s much easier to use a standard springform and do the pastry on the inside. The difference between a standard pastry and this version is that this uses boiling water and hot/melted oil to create a uniform crust. Standard pastry utilizes pieces of fat to create pockets and flakiness. Hot water pastry is so simple but you have to work quite quickly.
Make sure you have the pan greased, the filling ready to go, and work confidently. Everything needs to be rolled out and in place within maximum 10 minutes or it all goes to shit.
I don’t mean to scare you off – I’m not great at pastry and I can do this! Obviously I’m not very good or there wouldn’t be any filling on the outside of my pie, like you can see in the pictures. I waited a touch too long before adding the top and it didn’t quite crimp properly, but it still works.
There is room for error in terms of tearing because it can be patched, so don’t worry if things get a bit messy while you’re working quickly. If you’re very uncertain about making the pastry and you don’t have any issues with standard wheat flour, try all-purpose or a mix of all-purpose and bread flour, as outlined in the GGBO video the first time you make it as it will be a bit more forgiving than spelt. If hot water pastry seems too tricky for you, try this basic spelt pastry I use here instead.
This is the GGBO video. If this is your first time working with hot water pastry, I especially recommend watching the video, and make sure you read the tips and notes below the recipe before starting.
NOTE, however, that most of the information online says that this can’t be made vegan, which is ridiculous. Of course it can.
This is a vegan hot water pastry, uses a lower-gluten flour, and it works perfectly. I’ve made it several times now and I’m always happy with the results. It’s still sturdy, patchable, crisp, and the flavour is excellent. You do need some gluten for this to work, so I went with my go-to, spelt. Happy whole food Christmas!
If you make this Vegan Hot Water Crust Pie or any other vegetarian mains on Occasionally Eggs, please take a moment to rate the recipe and leave a comment below. It’s such a help to others who want to try the recipe. For more OE, follow along on Instagram, Facebook, and Pinterest, purchase the Occasionally Eggs cookbook, or subscribe for new posts via email.
Vegan Holiday Pie with Hot Water Pastry
Ingredients
Filling
- 1 tablespoon oil grapeseed, sunflower, coconut
- 200 grams / 3 cups* mushrooms chopped
- 1 medium yellow onion chopped
- 300 grams / 2 cups carrots cut into 1cm slices
- 3 cloves garlic minced
- 2 teaspoons sea salt to taste
- 1 teaspoon sweet paprika
- 1 teaspoon pepper
- ½ teaspoon cayenne pepper
- 1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
- 60 ml / 1/4 cup chopped canned tomatoes
- 375 ml / 1 1/2 cups water or vegetable stock
- 2 tablespoons red wine optional
- 150 grams / 1 cup brown lentils**
- 1 teaspoon dijon mustard
- 1 tablespoon arrowroot powder
- 60 ml / 1/4 cup water
- 300 g / 2 cups frozen peas
Vegan Hot Water Pastry
- 230 grams / 2 cups spelt flour***
- ½ teaspoon sea salt
- 80 ml / 1/3 cup water
- 50 grams / 1/4 cup coconut oil
- 60 ml / 1/4 cup olive oil
Instructions
Filling
- In a large pot, heat the oil over medium. Add the mushrooms and sear for about 4 minutes, or until golden and significantly reduced in size. Stir in the onion and cook for another 2 minutes, or until translucent. Add the carrots, and cook for another 4 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add the garlic, cook for an additional minute, then add the spices and stir for about 30 seconds. Pour the apple cider vinegar into the pot and stir, then the tomatoes, water, and red wine (if using).
- Increase the heat to high and bring to a boil. Add the lentils and reduce the heat to medium low, then simmer for 20-25 minutes. Stir in the mustard and taste for seasoning, adjusting if needed. Use a fork to whisk the arrowroot powder into the 1/4 cup water then pour into the pot and stir. It should thicken immediately. Add the peas and remove from the heat. Set this aside while you make the pastry.
Vegan Hot Water Pastry
- Grease a 20 cm / 8 inch springform pan with coconut oil and preheat the oven to 190C / 375F. Keep the filling on hand, and clear your countertop.
- Place the flour and salt into a large heat safe bowl. In a small saucepan, heat the water, coconut oil, and olive oil to a low boil over medium heat. Pour the water mixture into the bowl and stir briskly with a wooden spoon until it starts to combine. Use your hands – it will be hot, but shouldn’t burn – to mix and knead the dough for about a minute or until it forms a smooth ball.
- Separate the pastry into two pieces, two-thirds and one-third. Lightly flour a countertop and place two-thirds of the pastry onto it. You can also roll the pastry between two sheets of parchment paper. Roll it out to about 1 cm thick, resisting the urge to go thinner, turning occasionally, and working quickly. Place the rolled out pastry into the prepared springform and gently lift the sides and press the base and seams until settled. If it rips simply patch it with some extra pastry from the top. Make sure there are no empty spaces between the pan and the pastry.
- Place the filling into the pastry and press down gently with a spoon, again working quickly (your pastry for the topping is waiting). Flour the countertop again and roll out the remaining one-third of the pastry to 1 cm thick. Place this onto the pie and use your thumbs and fingertips to press the base and the top pastry together, then use a fork to seal it. There should be a lip of pastry slightly higher than where the filling ends. Trim any excess pastry with a knife.
- Use a wooden spoon to make at least one vent in the top of the pie. Bake for 60 minutes at 190C / 375F, then increase the heat to 220C / 430F for an additional 10 minutes to brown the pastry. Carefully remove from the oven and cool on a rack for 15-20 minutes before removing the sides of the pan, and serve hot. Don’t drop it.
Kary says
Can I use a regular store-bought pie crust in a pinch?
Alexandra Daum says
Hi Kary, you can definitely use the filling in a store-bought pie crust.
Susan says
How tall is your spring-form pan? I would love to make this for Thanksgiving but need to order the pan! Also, how many does this serve?
Thank you!!
Alexandra Daum says
Hi Susan, mine is about 6.5cm tall, but there’s extra dough left over, so you could use a slightly taller one as well. This serves about six depending on how much your guests will be eating! If it was all my husband, for example, I’d say four, but generally (and with Thanksgiving sides) I’d say six is safe.
marilyn says
love the idea of this pie and expect it to be delicious but wonder how it would be cooked in smaller pie cases with a vegan puff pastry that can be used for the top.. similar to traditional meat pies?
Alexandra Daum says
Hi Marilyn, I don’t see why that wouldn’t work. Simply top with puff rather than more of the hot water pastry.
nyssa says
Can I make this in cake pan? I don’t have springform pan. Can I just tip the pie out or upside down to get it out?
Alexandra says
Hmm, if you want to go that route, I think you might be better off slicing and serving from the pan rather than tipping it out after. You might be able to do something with criss-crossed pieces of parchment paper as a way to lift it out after baking too. I hope this helps – sorry I haven’t tried this so I can’t give concrete advice.
Blind Pugh says
Grey print on a white background is difficult to read.
Alexandra says
Hi there – I’m not sure if this is spam (it seems like it?) – the body font colour is #000000, which is pure black.
MomAlmighty says
This looks amazing but I am gluten sensitive and my son has Celiac Disease. Is there a gluten-free flour that will work?
Alexandra says
Unfortunately I don’t think it’ll work to make a hot water crust that’s both vegan and gluten free. I’d recommend using this crust (with the vegan version if needed) and make a version of this pie in a regular pie tin instead.
San says
I don’t like mushrooms, what can I use to replace them? Just more of the other veggies? Thanks.
Alexandra says
Yes, just use more of the other vegetables.
Kellie says
Great recipe! I made it for both Thanksgiving and Christmas. I added sweet potatoes and thyme and rosemary to make it a bit more festive. We also served it with cranberry sauce on top – to die for!!! I had a 9 inch springform pan and had to double the recipe for the crust. This was my first attempt at hot water pastry and I’m a horrible pie baker. I used whole spelt and it was quite crumbly and needed some patch work. Thank goodness it is quite forgiving! Should I use less flour and add in during kneading or is spelt always going to be like this? And… probably impossible to answer but HOW do you know when you’ve overworked it? Thanks for sharing this, will be #1 on our holiday list for many years to come!
Michele says
Hi, this looks phenomenal, but as it’s going to be my main dish, I really don’t want to mess it up!
You say you use “light spelt flour”. What do you mean by that? Is it a blend of white flour and spelt?
Alternatively, does whole wheat flour make an excellent result too?
Alexandra | Occasionally Eggs says
Hi Michele! Light spelt is just sifted spelt flour – if you want to be 100% certain that this’ll turn out for you and if it’s your first time making a hot water crust (?) I’d recommend all purpose flour. That’ll guarantee that it’ll turn out well for your holiday meal. I think whole wheat flour would also work but then I’d do a blend of all purpose and whole wheat. I hope this helps, and that you love the pie! P.S. I’ll be away for a few days over the holiday, but if you have further questions, feel free to email me.
Michele Dillon says
Got it! Thanks so much Alexandra, and have the happiest of holidays.
Kyla says
Have you tried making the dough as demonstrated in the video? (Using cold butter (or even cold coconut oil) in the dry ingredients & using an oil in the water?)
Alexandra | Occasionally Eggs says
I have, and it doesn’t seem to work unless it’s with butter – as a vegan version it doesn’t seem to.
Nick says
I can’t make the pastry quantities work. You call for a super thick pastry of 1.0 cm or 4/10 of an inch, but the quantities you give are no where near enough to line and top a pice in an 8 inch cake tin. Even using double your quantities you cannot make 1.0 cm thick pastry cover the pie? Anyway it tastes really good once I made the extra pastry and reduced the thickness by half.
Alexandra | Occasionally Eggs says
Hi Nick, as you can see in the photos, the pastry is indeed that thick – as is typical for a hot water pastry. Many readers have made this and I’ve always had good feedback on the quantities before this. I’m guessing that your tin is deeper and that’s why the quantities seem off to you. I’m glad you liked it in the end : )
Isabel says
I just made this pie yesterday – super easy and delicious ! I will be making this again for special occasions. My meat-eating partner loved it too. Thank you !
I added a few celery stalks in there. I didn’t have any tins of tomatos lying around, so did not use. But I did go all in with a full cup of red wine. Sounds like a lot, but it tasted lovely and rich 🙂
and I subbed arrowroot for cornstarch.
Susan says
I’m gluten free, therefore, spelt doesn’t work for me. Do you have
a recommendation for an alternative flour?
Alexandra | Occasionally Eggs says
I’m afraid I don’t think this particular type of pastry will work at all with gluten free flour – using a lower gluten flour like spelt is already pushing it a bit. I would suggest using your favourite gluten free pastry recipe and making the filling in the holiday pie rather than trying a hot water pastry with GF flour. I hope that helps!
Kelly says
This looks great, I’m planning to cook it up this weekend for my friend and I. I’ll be using regular self-raising flour or plain flour (UK), are the quantities still the same for the pastry?
Alexandra | Occasionally Eggs says
Hi Kelly!
It should be the same with plain flour – a friend made it with plain flour and used the same quantity, but she lives in the US. I would recommend using feel more than anything else while you’re making it! That being said, it should actually be easier with regular flour than with spelt and I’m sure it’ll turn out really well. Let me know how it goes 🙂
Alexandra
Alexandra Daum says
Thanks! It's a new holiday staple for us now 🙂
karie kirkpatrick says
That is one impressive-looking savory pie!