Vegetarian Pot Pies

Preheat your oven to 400 F and situate an oven rack to the middle of the oven.

In a large sauce pan, place the potatoes. Fill the pot with water until it just covers the potatoes then season with salt. Place on the stove and heat on high. Bring to a boil and boil for 7-8 minutes. Drain and set potatoes aside until you are ready to use.

Meanwhile, in a large Dutch oven over medium heat, melt the butter and add the leek, onion, fennel and season with salt and pepper. Cook over medium heat until the veggies are soft, about 8 minutes. Whisk in the flour until all has combined, and cook or 3-4 minutes. Gently whisk in the vegetable broth and add the thyme, oregano, mushrooms, parsley, carrots, peas and cooked potatoes. Stir to combine then season again with salt and pepper. Slowly drizzle in the heavy cream or milk and stir again to combine. Let simmer, covered, for about 20-25 minutes.

Meanwhile, flour a work surface lightly, and lay out your puff pastry or pie crust. With a lightly dusted rolling pin, roll out your dough until it is very thin. Prepare your preferred size of individual serving size ramekins by ladling in your filling until it reaches ¾ of the way up the dish.

Now cut out your dough into circles with a pair of kitchen shears so that it covers the entire top of the ramekin. Press down the edges of the dough with the back side of a fork and poke a few holes on the top.

Combine the egg and water in a small bowl and beat together. Brush the dough with the egg wash and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Set your ramekins on a large baking dish and bake at 400 F for 25 minutes or until golden brown. Let cool for 5 minutes and then serve!