Russian Vegetable Pie

This recipe is from a cookbook my mother-in-law gave me when I got married -- The Vegetarian Epicure by Anna Thomas. It is still in print. In 51 years of marriage, I have made this recipe more than 150 times (3 x a year)! I could eat the whole dish myself. It is really very, very good. Basic recipe serves 4-6 (with sides).

Ingredients:

Pastry:

1-1/4 cups flour (5 cups)

1 teaspoon sugar (4)

1 teaspoon salt (2)

4 oz. Softened cream cheese (16 oz.)

3 tablespoons butter (12)

Filling:

1 small head of cabbage (about 3 cups,

shredded or 12 for larger dish)

1/2 lb. Mushrooms (2 lbs.)

1 yellow onion (4)

To taste: (See note below)

1/8 teaspoon Basil

1/8 teaspoon Marjoram

1/8 teaspoon Tarragon

Salt & freshly-ground pepper

3 tablespoons butter (12)

4 oz. Softened cream cheese (16 oz.)

4-5 hard-cooked eggs (20)

Dill

Directions:

1. Make a pasty by sifting together the dry ingredients, cutting in the butter, and working it together with the cream cheese. Roll out 2/3 of the pastry and line a 9-inch pie dish. Roll out the remaining pastry and make a circle large enough to cover the dish. Chill.

2. Shred the cabbage coarsely. Wash the mushrooms and slice them. Peel and chop the onion.

3. In a large skillet, melt about 2 tablespoons butter. Add onion and cabbage and saute several minutes, stirring constantly. Add at least 1/8 teaspoon each of marjoram, tarragon and basil (all crushed), and some salt and fresh-ground pepper. Stirring often, allow the mixture to cook until the cabbage is wilted and the onions soft. Remover from the pan and set aside.

4. Add another tablespoon of butter to the pan and saute the mushrooms lightly for about 5-6 minutes, stirring constantly.

5. Spread the softened cream cheese in the bottom of the pie shell. Slice the eggs and arrange the slices in a layer over the cheese. Sprinkle them with a little chopped dill, then cover them with the cabbage. Make a final layer of the sauteed mushrooms and cover with the circle of pastry.

6. Press the pastry together tightly at the edges and flute them. With a sharp knife, cut a few short slashes through the top crust.

7. Bake in a 400-degree oven for 15 minutes, then turn the temperature down to 350̊ and continue baking for another 20-25 minutes, or until the crust is light brown.

Notes: This is a fantastic dish! A couple of modifications: 

1. While I have made this with the pie crust in the recipe, I much prefer my go-to pie crust, which is in the Williamsburg Cookbook. The modification here is that – instead of including the cream cheese in the dough – I soften it and spread the entire 8 oz. (for the pastry and the filling) on the pie crust after I put it in the pie plate. Works absolutely fine!

2. I have adjusted the ingredients for an 11 x 17” glass dish and those adjustments are in parentheses following each ingredient. For the larger dish, use 1/2 teaspoon each of marjoram, tarragon and basil.