Vegan Irish Hand Pies

What’s not to love about hand pies? Especially when they are stuffed with a delicious filling of cabbage and potato and smoky tempeh. And encased in a crispy, flaky, whole wheat crust?

I love hand pies, as you may have noticed from the number I’ve posted on this blog — from savory baked samosas to chickpea mushroom turnovers to my naan-calzones and pita packets. Part of the reason hand pies are so popular around here is because I have fast discovered that it’s easy to feed a kid something — almost anything — when you encase it in an attractive cover, or in this case, a crust.

Not that Jay doesn’t like cabbage or potatoes– he loves both. And the crust is so flaky and tender that he doesn’t mind– doesn’t care– that all of it is actually good for him.

I usually share a recipe or two for St. Patrick’s Day, and these Irish Hand Pies just screamed out “make me, I’m special!”  So I did. Hope you do the same!

Print Recipe

Vegan Irish Hand Pies

Delicious vegan Irish Hand Pies plump with a stuffing of cabbage, potatoes, and smoky tempeh, all encased in a coconut oil whole wheat crust.

Prep Time20 mins

Cook Time30 mins

Total Time50 mins

Course: Main

Cuisine: Irish

Servings: 10 pies

Author: Vaishali

Ingredients

• For the crust:
• 1 cup whole wheat flour
• 1 cup all purpose flour
• 1/2 cup coconut oil solid but scoopable
• 1/2 tsp salt
• Ice cold water
• For the filling:
• 2 tsp olive oil
• 2 cups shredded green cabbage
• 2 in medium red or yellow potatoes cut a 1/4-inch dice
• 1 6- oz package of smoky tempeh finely chopped (you can skip this and use beans or chickpeas or even crumbled tofu)
• 2 cloves of garlic minced
• 1 tbsp fresh thyme cut down to 1 tsp if using dry
• 1 tsp apple cider vinegar
• 1/4 cup tomato paste
• 1 tbsp tamari or soy sauce
• Salt and ground black pepper to taste

Instructions

• Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.
• In a bowl, whisk the flours with salt. Cut in the coconut oil using a fork or a pastry cutter.
• Drizzle the ice-cold water into the flour, a little at a time, while mixing with a fork, until the dough comes together.
• Pat the dough into a disc, wrap tightly with cling wrap, and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes. You can make the dough a day or two in advance and refrigerate.
• Heat the oil in a large saucepan.
• Add the garlic, saute for a minute, then add the potatoes followed by the cabbage.
• Cook the mixture for about 8-10 minutes, stirring frequently, until he cabbage has wilted and starts to change color.
• Add the thyme, tomato paste, apple cider vinegar and tamari. Stir well to mix.
• Add 3/4 cup of water and give it all a good stir. Cover the saucepan and cook about 10 minutes or until the potatoes are cooked and really tender.
• Add the smoked tempeh and stir well to mix. Make sure all of the water in the mixture has evaporated.
• Roll out the dough to about 1/8th of an inch thickness. Using a three-inch cookie cutter, or a bowl, cut rounds from the dough. Roll up remaining scraps, roll out, and cut more rounds. You should have 20 when you're done.
• Place about 2 heaping tablespoons of filling in the center of a round. Place a second round on top and pinch the edges together. You can crimp with a fork for a pretty look.
• Repeat for remaining nine pies. Place all the pies on a foil-lined baking sheet.
• Bake the hand pies in the lowest rack of the oven for 15 minutes or until lightly golden.
• Remove, cool slightly on a rack, serve.

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More recipes for Irish Day:

Irish Vegan Lamb Stew

Whole Wheat Irish Soda Bread

Irish Cream Cupcakes

Irish Shepherd’s Pie