These mini pies are the perfect spring/summer dish! Filled with creamy potatoes, asparagus, cream cheese, cheddar, and chives, these mini pies are an elegant appetizer or meal.
1 ½poundspotatoes, red or yukon gold, chopped to 1/2 inch cubes (I like to use red or yukon gold potatoes here so I don't have to peel them)
½tspsea salt
2clovesgarlic, minced
1cupvegetable broth
For the rest of the filling:
¼cupcream cheese
2Tbspfresh chives, chopped
3asparagus spears, chopped to 1/3 inch pieces (I cut mine on the bias)
½cupcheddar, freshly grated (white is really good here!)
½tsppaprika
½tsponion salt
1/8tsppepper
1egg
For the dough
1 ½cupsflour
½cupcold butter, cubed
½tsppaprika
½tspsea salt
2Tbsp- ¼ cup cold water
Everything else:
Tomatoes, thinly sliced
Instructions
Make the potatoes
In a large skillet, cook the potatoes, garlic, and salt in the olive oil for 5 minutes over medium heat. Stir frequently to keep the potatoes from sticking to the bottom of the pan.
Add the vegetable broth, and cover the pan, keeping the heat on medium. Stir occasionally, and cook the potatoes for 12 minutes, until a fork goes easily through a piece.
Now uncover the potatoes, turn the heat to medium low, and cook for two more minutes, flipping the potatoes continuously. After two minutes, most of the vegetable broth will be absorbed by the potatoes. Turn off the heat, and let the potatoes cool slightly.
Make the filling
While the potatoes cook, prepare the rest of the filling ingredients.
To a medium sized bowl, add the cream cheese. Use a fork, and mix the cream cheese in the bowl to soften it a little bit. Don’t worry if the cream cheese is a little lumpy at this point--the warmth of the potatoes when we add them will smooth the cream cheese out.
Add the rest of the filling ingredients (but not the egg!)
Now add the chives, asparagus, pepper, paprika, and onion salt to the bowl. Do a rough mix, then add the potatoes. Mix everything together until completely incorporated. The warmth of the potatoes will help soften the cream cheese.
Next, add the cheddar, and mix again to incorporate.
Make the dough
While the filling cools a bit, make the dough for the crust.
In a medium-sized mixing bowl, add the flour, salt, paprika, and cubed butter. With your hands or a pastry cutter, mix everything together until you have clumps the size of peas.
Now add the water. Start with 2 Tbsp, and mix until the dough comes together. If the dough is too dry, add the remaining 2 Tbsp of water. And if the dough is too wet, add a little more flour, but only about a tsp at a time. The dough consistency is correct when it all comes together cohesively, and you can form one disk out of the dough. The dough should be moist, but not wet.
You can refrigerate the dough for later use, or make the pies right away.
Press in the crust
I recommend using a standard 12 cup muffin/cupcake tin.
Spray the tin with cooking spray.
Use 2 tsp of dough per cup, and with your fingers, press the dough into the bottom and up the sides of each cup. A little bit of dough goes a long way here, so don’t be tempted to do much more than 2 tsp of dough per cup! I find it also makes the best ratio of crust to filling in the finished pies if you use 2 tsp of dough per cup.
Add the egg to the filling
Once you have put the crust in all 12 cups of the muffin tin, add the egg to the filling, and stir until completely incorporated.
Put the filling in the crust
Now put the filling into each cup of the muffin tin. Fill each cup to just about the top of the crust--the filling won’t rise much in the oven.
Note: you will have a little bit of extra filling. I like to make a crustless pie with the leftover filling. (I just bake it in an oiled 8 oz ramekin.)
Top each veggie pie with thinly sliced tomato, if desired.
Bake the pies
Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.
Bake the pies for 25 minutes, until the crust is slightly browned, and the filling is golden.
Serve and enjoy!
Serve these veggie pies as an appetizer, or make them a meal! These mini pies are excellent served with white beans—garbanzo or cannellini are my favorite—and spinach dressed with my creamy balsamic dressing.
Notes
These mini pies are vegetarian.The filling of these mini pies is gluten free, and can be used to make a gluten free crustless mimi pie.These mini pies are excellent served with white beans—garbanzo or cannellini are my favorite—and spinach dressed with my creamy balsamic dressing.