Lentil and Winter Vegetable Cobbler

Okay, so it suddenly might be feeling a lot less like winter where we live, but that didn't stop me from totally abandoning my dinner plans last night when I spotted this recipe. Just prior to starting dinner, I was flipping through Practical Vegetarian, which I've had for years and somehow have never made anything from. This vegetable and lentil bake topped with cheesy biscuits caught my eye, and other than some rutabagas I had everything needed. While slightly more time consuming than I anticipated, it was well worth it. The lentils make it very hearty, and Sage said he definitely didn't miss the meat in this.

Once assembled, this dish bakes for 20 minutes, is topped with the biscuits, and then returned to the oven for an additional 10-12 minutes, at a higher temperature. I realized after nearly 10 minutes than I'd forgotten to increase the temperature. I turned it up and cooked it for another 8 minutes or so, and it was perfect- the veggies and lentils were tender, but not overcooked, and the biscuits were just right. I will write it as the recipe specifies but I can't say from experience if that cooking time is just right. This yummy cobbler took a little over an hour from start to finish, but actually comes together easily, and you could certainly swap out the vegetables for whichever ones you have on hand.

adapted from Practical Vegetarian

1 tbsp olive oil
1 small onion, diced
sea salt
2 celery ribs, sliced
3 carrots, sliced
1/3 large head of cauliflower, broken into florets (about 3 cups)
1 clove garlic, minced
4 oz. button mushrooms, sliced
1 (14.5 oz.) can of petite diced tomatoes
1/4 cup green or brown lentils, rinsed and picked over
2 tbsp cornstarch
3 tbsp water
1 cup vegetable stock
2 tbsp hot sauce
2 tsp chopped fresh oregano
fresh ground pepper

biscuit topping:
1 1/2 cup all purpose flour
1/2 cup whole wheat flour
1 tbsp baking powder
1 tsp salt
1/4 cup unsalted butter
1 cup shredded sharp cheddar (I used 2%)
2 tsp chopped oregano
1 egg, beaten
2/3 cup reduced fat milk

Preheat oven to 350. Heat oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add onions, salt, and sweat for 5 minutes. Add celery, carrots, and cauliflower and saute for 2 minutes. Add garlic to pan, and cook for another minute. Stir in mushrooms, tomatoes with their juices and lentils.

Mix together the cornstarch and water until smooth and add to pan, along with the stock, hot sauce, oregano and several grinds of pepper. Bring to a boil, stirring. Transfer to a 3 qt. baking dish and cover with foil. Bake for 20 minutes.

To make biscuit topping, stir flour, salt and baking powder in a large bowl. Using a pastry cutter, cut in butter. Stir in cheese and oregano. Mix together beaten egg and milk, and add enough to the dry ingredients to make a soft dough. Reserve leftover milk and egg mixture. Knead dough lightly, and roll out to 1/2 inch thickness. Cut into 2 inch rounds. (I don't have a biscuit cutter, so I used a 3 inch flower shaped cookie cutter.)

Remove the dish from the oven, and increase the temperature to 400. Arrange the biscuits on top of the cobbler, and brush with remaining egg and milk. (My wonderful husband was helping me, by doing the dishes and unknowingly washed the bowl containing my leftover milk and egg, so I skipped this step.)

Bake, uncovered, for an additional 10-12 minutes or until the topping has risen and is golden. (Without the wash, mine didn't become golden, but they did rise nicely.) Let rest a few minutes before serving.