Vegan Cauliflower Pot Pie with Biscuits

This vegan cauliflower pot pie is a nutrient-dense take on the classic comfort food. Celery, carrots, tiny cauliflower florets, and peas are simmered in a rich cauliflower-cashew sauce. The nourishing pot pie filling is then topped with vegan biscuits and baked until hot and bubbly. You don't want to miss out on this modern twist on a classic!

If the area you call "home" has been as chilly and icy as the area I call home lately, then you, too, will appreciate this ultra cozy, comforting dish.

This vegan take on classic chicken pot pie swaps out chicken in exchange for cauliflower and features a topping made solely of fluffy, buttery biscuits in place of the usual pie encasing.

It's packed to the brim with veggies—even the creamy, saucy, gravy-ish base is plant-powered—and yet I have a feeling you could fool a chicken pot pie aficionado (if those sorts of people exist) into believing it's the "real" thing.

When I shared a sneak peak of this recipe on Insta stories last week, many of you went wild and excitedly bombarded my DMs with inquiries for the recipe.

I love it when that happens. A sign that I've struck a chord with your (anticipatory) tastebuds.

I aim to please and so it warms my heart when you're as excited about a recipe as I am.

Let's take a closer look at this beauty and dive into the tasty details...

The methods in this recipe are simple and straightforward, but there's a bit of multitasking. To assist, I added a "To Prepare" section to the recipe.

Basically, it's an itemized list of what to do to make the entire pot-pie-making process easier and more go-with-the-flow.

Once you've worked your way through the preparation steps, you'll get started on the biscuits.

The biscuits are basically a veganized mashup of Pinch of Yum's biscuits and Minimalist Baker's biscuits.

They have more butter (like POY's recipe—yasss), they include vegan "buttermilk" (like MB's recipe).

You'll make the buttermilk by combining plant-based milk and a splash of apple cider vinegar. Swirl those two together and allow the mixture to hang out and curdle for about five minutes.

Meanwhile, whisk together flour, baking powder, and salt in a mixing bowl.

Add six tablespoons of cold, cubed butter, and use a pasty cutter (or your hands) to "cut" the butter into the flour mixture.

Next, create a well in the center of the flour mixture and add the buttermilk.

Use a spatula to stir, stir, stir until just combined. Resist the temptation to over-mix if you want ultra-tender biscuits.

The dough should be moist [cue word-induced bodily cringe] but not sticky or wet.

Turn the dough out onto a clean, floured surface (which is already ready to go because you diligently followed those "To Prepare" instructions), and fold it over on itself a few times.

This is less of a kneading motion and much more of a fold-n-press scenario.

Use a biscuit cutter or the rim of a small juice glass to punch out about six biscuits. Gently reform the dough and repeat until you've used up as much of the dough as possible. You should have about 8 to 10 biscuits.

(Fun fact: The biscuit cutter in the photos below was my grandma Mary's—she's still alive and well, working full-time and running a business at the age of 92, but she kindly gave me a box of vintage baking tools she no longer uses. This one is a dual biscuit and donut cutter. Cute and clever.)

Alright, now set those raw biscuits aside and get to work on the filling.

The cauliflower pot pie filling is inspired by this creamy wild rice soup recipe. Since sharing the recipe two years ago, many of you have reached out to say that the flavors remind you of pot pie.

Figured it was about time to leverage that brilliant flavor association...

For those of you who have made that soup, you'll find that the base for this pot pie filling is quite similar.

You'll start by boiling a few cups of fresh cauliflower.

Meanwhile, sauté the remaining cauliflower florets along with the celery, carrots, and onion (that you already prepped) in a bit of vegan butter.

You'll want to give the mixture a stir every few minutes or so to prevent scorching, but meanwhile, you'll hop back to that boiled cauliflower and add it to a blender along with some filtered water, soaked cashews, nutritional yeast, lemon juice, salt, and pepper.

Blend until super smooth and creamy—it should look like this. Set the cauliflower-cashew cream within reach of the blender.

Once the veggies are sautéed into a tender, just-beginning-to-caramelize state, add the cauliflower-cashew cream and a small heap of frozen petite peas to the pan. Continue to cook for just a few more minutes.

Turn off the heat, taste, and season with a bit more salt and pepper, if desired.

Then, arrange (or plop 🤪) the raw biscuits on top and bake for 15 to 20 minutes, or until the filling is hot and bubbly and the biscuits are golden-brown on top and baked through.

That's it.

Let it cool for about 5 to 10 minutes, and then serve it up warm, ensuring that each and every loved one receives at least one biscuit.

I set the serving size for this easy vegan pot pie at six people, but that number will, of course, vary based on the appetites and ages of those who partake in enjoying it.

I hope you love this one as much as I do. 💗

If you make this vegan cauliflower pot pie with biscuits, let me know! Leave a comment, rate the recipe, and don’t forget to tag a photo #blissfulbasil on Instagram.

📖 Recipe

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5 from 3 votes

Vegan Cauliflower Pot Pie with Biscuits

This vegan cauliflower pot pie is a nutrient-dense take on the classic comfort food. Celery, carrots, tiny cauliflower florets, and peas are simmered in a rich cauliflower-cashew sauce. The nourishing pot pie filling is then topped with vegan biscuits and baked until hot and bubbly.  You don't want to miss out on this modern comfort dish!

Course Bigger Bites

Cuisine American, plant-based, Vegan

Keyword Cauliflower, Comfort Food, Pot Pie

Prep Time 35 minutes minutes

Cook Time 35 minutes minutes

Total Time 1 hour hour 10 minutes minutes

Servings 6 people

Author Ashley Melillo | Blissful Basil

Ingredients

Vegan Biscuits

• ⅔ cup plain, unsweetened plant-based milk
• 1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 tablespoon aluminum-free baking powder
• ½ teaspoon sea salt
• 6 tablespoons cold vegan butter, diced, plus a few tablespoons of melted vegan butter for brushing the biscuits before baking

Cauliflower Pot Pie Filling

• 6 cups fresh cauliflower florets (very small, bite-size florets), divided
• 3 tablespoons vegan butter
• 1 large white or yellow onion, diced
• 4 medium carrots, peeled and finely diced
• 4 stalks celery, trimmed and finely diced
• ½ teaspoon dried thyme or more to taste
• ½ teaspoon dried rosemary or more to taste
• 1 ½ cups frozen petite peas
• 1 ½ to 2 ½ cups low-sodium vegetable broth or filtered water in a pinch (see note*)
• ½ cup raw cashews, soaked for two hours (unless using a high-speed blender)
• 3 tablespoons nutritional yeast
• 1 ½ tablespoons fresh lemon juice
• 1 ¼ teaspoons sea salt, plus more to taste
• Freshly ground black pepper, to taste

Instructions

To Prepare

• Bring a large pot of water to a boil.
• Wash, prepare, and chop the vegetables for the filling (cauliflower, celery, carrots, onion).
• Preheat the oven to 450F.
• Lightly flour a clean work surface.

For the Biscuits

• In a spouted mixing bowl, combine the plant-based milk and the vinegar. Let stand for 5 minutes to create vegan buttermilk
• In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, and salt.
• Add the cold butter and use your fingers or a pastry cutter to "cut" the butter into the flour mixture until it's well incorporated and dispersed throughout the flour mixture.
• Create a well in the center of the flour mixture. Stir in the "buttermilk" and continuing stirring until just combined.
• The dough should be moist and malleable and only the slightest bit tacky. If the dough is too wet, add more flour a little bit at a time.
• Turn the dough out onto the floured surface.
• Fold the dough over on itself a few times—be careful not to knead, just fold and press. Form into a 1-inch-thick layer.
• Use a biscuit cutter or the rim of a juice glass to punch out about 6 biscuits. Gently reform the dough scraps and repeat until you've used up as much of the dough as possible. You should have 8 to 10 biscuits in total.
• Set aside and get to work on the filling.

To Make the Pot Pie Filling

• Add 3 cups of the cauliflower florets to the pot of boiling water, and boil for 5 to 7 minutes, or until fork-tender (boiling time will depend on the size of your florets). Drain and set aside.
• While the cauliflower boils, melt the butter in a large but shallow oven-safe stockpot or dutch oven over medium-high heat.
• Add the remaining 3 cups cauliflower florets along with the onion, carrots, celery, thyme, and rosemary. Sauté for 8 to 12 minutes, or until the vegetables begin to soften and caramelize, stirring occasionally. You want the cauliflower to be tender at this point.
• Meanwhile, add the boiled cauliflower to a high-speed blender along with the broth (or filtered water), cashews, nutritional yeast, lemon juice, sea salt, and lots of black pepper. Blend on high for two minutes, or until completely smooth and creamy. Set aside.
• Add the peas and the cauliflower cream and continue to cook for 2 to 4 minutes, or until the peas are warmed through and the cauliflower cream is hot and bubbly, stirring gently but constantly to prevent sputtering and splashing.
• Turn off the heat. Taste and adjust seasonings, adding more salt and pepper to taste (I add ½ teaspoon more salt and a few generous twists of freshly ground black pepper).
• Use a spatula or the back of a spoon to compact and spread the filling into an even layer in the dutch oven. Arrange the biscuits on top of the filling and brush them with the melted vegan butter.
• I like to finish the biscuits with a sprinkle of smoked flaky sea salt before popping the dish in the oven, but this step is totally optional.
• Bake for 15 to 20 minutes, or until the filling is hot and bubbly; and the biscuits are golden-brown on top and baked through.
• Let cool for 5 minutes or so. Serve warm, ensuring that each helping gets a biscuit.

Notes

*If you prefer your filling very thick (as seen in this post's photographs), use just 1 ½ cups broth/water. If you prefer your filling a bit looser and soupier, use more broth/water—up to 2 ½ cups—just be sure to add plenty more salt to taste to adjust for the additional liquid.