Pamela Anderson Just Shared a Cozy Fall Dinner

Late fall means cool nights, so planning cozy dinners for the week is basically a must. Soul-healing soups and cheesy casseroles may already be in your lineup, but Pamela Anderson just shared a dish that is a guaranteed weekend winner.

On a recent segment of Good Morning America, the actor and model shared a must-try recipe from her new cookbook, I Love You. The comforting dinner Anderson demonstrated was her Harvest Veggie Pot Pies made with seasonal veggies from her personal garden. 

Potpies are a peak comfort meal, and Anderson’s recipe is entirely unique. Not only are they muffin-sized potpies, making them perfect for kids, but they’re also vegan-friendly. The recipe calls for plant-based protein options like flaxseeds and cannellini beans, and the combination of veggies like butternut squash, carrot and onion alongside the beans means each pie is packed with fiber.

We got our hands on Anderson’s fall-forward recipe. Scroll to learn how to make these mini potpies that the star calls a “delicious meal.” 

Harvest Veggie Pot Pies

Anderson writes in her cookbook, “I like these pies because they’re individual and easy to prepare in a muffin tin–small enough to be handled. With young kids, you feel like you’re always throwing something in their hands as they run out the door. I like to add some sage gravy to mine as I sit alone at my kitchen table … taking a breath.”

Servings: 10

Ingredients

Dough

• 3 cups unbleached organic all-purpose flour
• 1 tablespoon granulated sugar
• ½ teaspoon fine sea salt
• 1 cup plus 1 tablespoon plant butter, frozen or chilled
• 2 teaspoons ground flaxseed
• ⅔ cup (160 ml) ice water

Filling

• 4 cups diced butternut squash (from about 1 medium)
• 1 cup fresh cranberries
• 1 shallot, minced
• 3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, divided
• Fine sea salt
• Freshly ground black pepper
• 1 tablespoon plant butter
• ½ small yellow onion, finely chopped
• 1 carrot, finely chopped
• 1 celery stalk, finely chopped
• 4 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 (15-ounce) can cannellini beans, drained and rinsed well
• 3 sage leaves, thinly sliced into ribbons
• ¼ cup white wine

Gravy

• 2 tablespoons plant butter
• 1 tablespoon unbleached organic all-purpose flour
• 1 cup (240 ml) unsweetened plant milk
• 1 teaspoon soy sauce
• 3 sage leaves, thinly sliced into ribbons
• Fine sea salt
• Freshly ground black pepper

Directions

Step 1

Make the dough: In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, sugar, and salt. Cut the plant butter into the flour mixture until it resembles breadcrumbs. Stir the flaxseed into the water, then add to the bowl. Use your hands to knead the mixture into a very soft and tender dough (it will firm up in the fridge, don’t worry). Divide it into 2 pieces, one that’s about one-third of the whole and the other that’s approximately two-thirds. Cover and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes.

Step 2

Preheat the oven to 400°F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

Step 3

Make the filling: Place the squash, cranberries, and shallot on the prepared baking sheet. Drizzle with 1 tablespoon of the olive oil, sprinkle with salt and pepper, and toss until evenly coated. Roast until the squash is golden brown, 30 to 40 minutes. Let cool. Meanwhile, heat the plant butter and the remaining 2 tablespoons of olive oil in a large pan over medium-high heat. Add the onion, carrot, and celery and cook, stirring occasionally, until the onion softens, 3 to5 minutes. Add the garlic and cook, stirring often, for 2 minutes. Stir in the beans and sage and season with salt and pepper. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the carrot has softened and everything is golden, about 5 minutes. Pour in the wine and continue to cook for 1 minute. Remove from the heat and let cool. 

Step 4

Assemble the pot pies: When the dough has chilled, remove the larger piece from the fridge and roll it out on a floured work surface until it’s just under ¼ inch thick. Use a cookie cutter to cut out 10 (5-inch) circles (just gather and reroll the scraps as needed—if the dough becomes too soft, chill it in the freezer for a few minutes and try again). Place them in a muffin pan and mold to the shape of the cups—these are your bottom crusts. Roll out the smaller piece of dough to the same thickness, just under ¼ inch, and cut out 10 circles that are the right size to be the top crusts, usually about 3¼ inches in diameter (chill the dough again as needed). Stir together the roasted squash mixture and the cooked vegetables, then spoon that into the bottom crusts. Lay the top crusts over the filling and squeeze the edges to crimp them together, sealing the filling inside the pies. Use a fork to pierce holes in the center of each pie. Bake until golden, about 35 minutes. 

Step 5

Meanwhile, make the gravy: Combine the plant butter and flour in a small saucepan over medium heat. Cook, stirring constantly, until the flour turns golden, about 3 minutes. Add the plant milk, soy sauce and sage, rubbing the sage between your fingers as you drop it into the pan. Bring to a simmer and cook until the gravy thickens, about 5 minutes. Taste and season with salt and pepper. Let the pot pies cool in the pan for about 5 minutes, then carefully remove them from the pan and serve with the hot gravy.

Excerpted from I LOVE YOU by Pamela Anderson with Maria Zizka. Copyright © 2024 by Anderson Media Company, LLC. Photographs by Ditte Isager. Used with permission of Voracious, an imprint of Little, Brown and Company. New York, NY. All rights reserved.