Home ยป Meatless Monday: Chickpea Potpie with Cornbread Crust

Meatless Monday: Chickpea Potpie with Cornbread Crust

Can I be honest about a few things?

Firstly, I’m totally bummed it’s Monday – so bummed. You can probably see me pouting through the screen. Secondly, this dish far, far exceeded my expectations. I like everything in the dish, but I wasn’t quite so sure it would have that wow-factor, especially if it were to be compared to a classic potpie. Mmmm…potpie.

But I was wrong. And unlike some people, namely, Mr. Prevention, I can admit when I’m wrong.

If you’re undecided about or underwhelmed by chickpeas like I myself (unless their processed with garlic and tahini to make hummus), this dish is likely to change your mind. Of course, you could sub chicken or turkey in for the chickpeas and I imagine this dish would still be one to sing praises over.

If you can find a filling portion of comforting potpie for under 300 calories and nearly 7 1/2 grams of fiber per serving, that actually tastes good…well, it aint gunna happen.

Seeing as I’m about a week behind the masses, I guess it’s time to commit myself to food journaling. While I still believe it to be true that I am burnt out on writing down my every last bite from years of dieting, I would love to continue losing weight…at a faster rate, ideally. ‘Cause, well…it just can’t go much slower!

I want to focus on not what I eat (I’m good there), but portion sizes — meals made in ramekins like this one are perfect for portion control — and maybe not always having a glass of wine when I have to grade papers or lesson plan at night.

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Chickpea Potpie with Cornbread Crust adapted from Big Bowl of Love and Eats Well With Others

Filling:
2 cups sweet potatoes, peeled and diced
1/2 cup carrots, diced
1 Tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
1 medium onion, diced
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1-14 oz can low-sodium vegetable broth
1-14 oz can chickpeas, drained and rinsed
1/2 cup frozen baby peas
1/4 tsp kosher salt
cracked pepper, to taste
dash of Tabasco sauce

Crust:
3/4 cup yellow cornmeal
3/4 cup whole wheat pastry flour
1 Tbsp baking powder
1 1/2 Tbsp sugar
1/2 tsp salt
3/4 cup fat free milk
2 Tbsp olive oil
1 large egg yolk, slightly beaten

Directions:

Boil the potatoes and carrots until tender but not soft and set aside, about 7-8 minutes.

Spray a 2 1/2-quart casserole dish with cooking spray (or 7 ramekins!)

For the filling, heat the oil in a large skillet. Add the onions and saute until soft, about 5 minutes. Sprinkle in the 1/4 cup flour and mix. Slowly pour in the vegetable stock whisking well with a wire whisk. Still using the whisk, cook the mixture over medium heat until thickened and bubbly, about 2 to 3 minutes.

Add the chickpeas, peas, cooked potatoes and carrots, salt, pepper to taste, and Tabasco. Cook on medium heat until the mixture is heated through, about 2 to 3 minutes. Distribute the filling into the prepared casserole dish, spreading evenly or divide evenly among ramekins.

Preheat oven to 400 F.

For the crust, in a bowl combine the cornmeal, 3/4 cup flour, baking powder, sugar, and salt. In a small bowl, combine the milk, oil, and egg yolk. Add to the dry ingredients and mix until uniform but a bit lumpy. Spoon the batter evenly over the filling.

Bake until the top is golden brown, about 22 to 25 minutes for the casserole and 10 to 12 minutes for the ramekins. Yield: 7 servings (about 1 1/3 cup each).

Nutrition Information (per serving): 291 calories; 7.7 g. fat; 31 mg. cholesterol; 666 mg. sodium; 47 g. carbohydrate; 7.3 g. fiber; 7.9 g. protein

Result: Comfort food without the calories or guilt! I actually had to double check the nutrition information to be sure it wasn’t a mistake. This potpie tastes far too good to come in under 300 calories a serving. The hands-on time for this dish is under 25 minutes which makes it great for weeknights. It reheats great and is a perfect starter entree for those wishing to incorporate more vegetarian meals while still pleasing all the mouths they have to feed. I will warn that I used 2 ramekins (6 ounces each) and a 2-quart casserole dish — all was fine. But a 2 quart will not fit all the potpie and crust so go with a 2 1/2 quart or 2 smaller casserole dishes just to be sure – the crust will rise about double and there’s plenty to spread over all of the pie insides! Enjoy!

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You read it, I’m doing it — food journaling!

Be well,

Share With Your Friends!

24 Comments

  1. Heather
    January 9, 2012 / 7:12 am

    I

  2. Gina (The Candid RD)
    January 9, 2012 / 7:18 am

    Sounds delicious!! I don’t think I’ve ever made a pot pie. But hey, you’d be proud of me, I’ve decided to start cooking more and now on my days off I am going to make one new recipe (so 2 each week!). So far I’m actually enjoying this new cooking process (before I would just throw stuff together, literally). I love getting inspiration from your blog!

    Keep smiling, Monday will be over before you know it!

  3. Amy B @ Second City Randomness
    January 9, 2012 / 7:49 am

    I’ve really started using chick peas often. They’re a good protein source for me, being as how I don’t buy meat very often. They even work well in chili. ๐Ÿ™‚

    Pot pie is something that reminds me of when I was younger. It was one of the few things I actually remember enjoying at school lunch…

  4. Jenni
    January 9, 2012 / 8:12 am

    I got some ramekins for Christmas and I couldn’t find a dish I wanted to make! This sounds absolutely perfect – I can’t wait to try it!

  5. Joanne
    January 9, 2012 / 8:17 am

    Yay! I’m SO glad you liked it! I actually had no idea how few calories it was since I only calculated the WW points but now I”m quite impressed with myself lol. this was definitely one of my favorite meals of 2011! And yes, I’m finding that portion control is KEY to losing weight. It’s not about not eating brownies, it’s about only eating ONE of them.

  6. Lauren at Keep It Sweet
    January 9, 2012 / 8:33 am

    I am pouting right along with you! I’ve been wanting to try this recipe since I saw it on Joanne’s blog- good to know it was such a success!

  7. Erin
    January 9, 2012 / 9:53 am

    Great idea to sub chickpeas, i’ll have to try it out. And I also am not happy that it is monday. It means I present my research tomorrow in front of the department and I am always nervous even though some of it I have presented several times already! But I digress.. I want this potpie.

  8. Grace@ FoodFitnessFreshair
    January 9, 2012 / 10:06 am

    When you mentioned this recipe to me last week, it definitely peaked my interest. Even more so now since I saw sweet potatoes and a whole wheat crust on its ingredient list! Bookmarking this one.

  9. EA-The Spicy RD
    January 9, 2012 / 11:20 am

    This looks really delicious Nicole-pure comfort food! Gluten-Free Girl and the Chef has a delicious recipe for cornbread which I’ll try with it, and use a gluten-free flour in the filling. Glad you could find another way to enjoy chickpeas ๐Ÿ™‚

  10. Leah @ Why Deprive?
    January 9, 2012 / 11:40 am

    Well, I was sold by the cornbread crust. This sounds ridiculously good. I LOVE potpie – and I’ve never made it before. I think it’s about time to change that. ๐Ÿ™‚

  11. Biz
    January 9, 2012 / 11:42 am

    I think I’d like to try making this with chicken – yum! My WW leader says:

    “If you bite it, you must write it!” ๐Ÿ˜€

  12. Alida
    January 9, 2012 / 2:25 pm

    Yum! I’ve never been a potpie kinda person (mostly because of the meat…and peas), but this will definitely change that. What a delicious use for chickpeas!

    I downloaded an app to my iTouch to help with food journaling. Surprisingly enough, I used it religiously and it worked!

  13. Andrea@WellnessNotes
    January 9, 2012 / 2:33 pm

    The potpies sound wonderful! And I love using my ramekins for portion control!

    Have a great week!

  14. Kristen (swanky dietitian)
    January 9, 2012 / 7:20 pm

    This looks delicious!
    I love that you used chickpeas. What an inventive idea!
    I know what you mean. I also find that I struggle with portion sizes. Hang it there..you’ll do great! ๐Ÿ™‚

  15. Reba
    January 9, 2012 / 11:00 pm

    Thank you for this recipe! I was just saying I wanted to try making a potpie… and this looks great!

  16. Jey
    January 10, 2012 / 12:20 pm

    I sent my husband to the store to buy a can of chickpeas to make hummus with and he returned with a Costco sized can…. So excited to try this recipe

  17. Samantha @ Bikini Birthday
    January 10, 2012 / 1:13 pm

    This sounds like my kind of dish. I love vegetarian dishes, and I actually really like chickpeas anyway.

  18. Cara
    January 11, 2012 / 12:38 pm

    I’m very impressed with this one! Pretty sure we’ll be trying it soon ๐Ÿ™‚

  19. Haley Peterson
    January 22, 2012 / 11:27 am

    Oh my gosh. This recipe is absolutely delicious! (not that I expected it to be anything less.) My whole family enjoyed this, even though it doesn’t have meat. The chickpeas are a great alternative. Definitely making this again soon.

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  21. Megan
    February 12, 2012 / 6:13 pm

    I just found your blog yesterday and spent forever looking through and bookmarking some of your yummy looking meatless recipes. I made these chickpea potpies tonight, with a few tweaks on the veggies for what I had on hand (skipped the sweet potato, added mushrooms and green beans, subbed corn for the peas) and they were so good! I cut the recipe in half and wish I had made the whole thing for leftovers. Looking forward to trying more of your recipes!

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