Spring Penny Pincher: Just 4 ingredients. I make it when I want a satisfying, budget-friendly dinner handled with almost zero effort.

This 4-ingredient oven depression era golden pie is my modern nod to the resourceful home cooks of the 1930s, who could turn almost nothing into something deeply comforting. It bakes into an unidentifiable, golden, crusted mass with glistening peaks and a fibrous, almost mysterious texture—exactly the kind of thing you pull from the oven when you want a satisfying, budget-friendly dinner with almost zero effort. The filling is based on pantry vegetables and a creamy binder, then topped with a quick batter that puffs and browns into a crisp, rustic lid. It’s not fancy, but it’s filling, thrifty, and wonderfully hands-off.

Serve this golden pie hot, straight from the baking dish, with a simple green salad dressed in sharp vinaigrette to cut through the richness. A side of steamed or roasted frozen vegetables works well if you want to keep the meal frugal and easy. If you’d like to stretch it further, spoon the pie over slices of toast or alongside boiled potatoes or buttered noodles. A splash of hot sauce, vinegar, or a spoonful of pickles on the side adds brightness and keeps the plate interesting.

Servings: 4

1 (10.5 oz) can condensed cream of mushroom soup

Preheat your oven to 400°F (200°C). Lightly grease a medium ceramic baking dish (about 8x8 inches or similar capacity) with a smear of oil or butter if you have it; this helps the edges brown and release more easily.

In a large bowl, whisk together the condensed cream of mushroom soup and the milk until smooth and evenly combined. This mixture is your creamy, savory base and will keep the pie moist as it bakes.

Add the frozen mixed vegetables directly to the soup mixture. Stir until the vegetables are evenly coated and distributed. Don’t thaw them; the extra chill helps keep the filling from overcooking while the top crust sets and browns.

Pour the vegetable and soup mixture into the prepared ceramic baking dish, spreading it into an even layer. Use a spoon or spatula to nudge vegetables into the corners so the surface is fairly level; this helps the top crust bake evenly into golden peaks.

In a separate bowl, place the baking mix. Add just enough water, a tablespoon at a time (about 1/3 to 1/2 cup total), stirring gently until you have a thick, spoonable batter—similar to drop biscuit dough. It should be thick enough to hold soft peaks, not pourable like pancake batter; this is what creates that dramatic, craggy, crusted surface.

Using a spoon, drop the batter in rough mounds all over the top of the vegetable filling. Don’t worry about covering every last spot; leave a few small gaps so steam can escape. The uneven dollops will puff and brown into glistening, fibrous-looking ridges and peaks as they bake.

Place the dish on the middle rack of the preheated oven. Bake for 30 to 35 minutes, until the top is deeply golden brown, crisp at the highest points, and the filling is bubbling vigorously around the edges. The surface should look like an unidentifiable golden mass with textured, browned peaks.

Once baked, remove the dish from the oven and let the pie rest for at least 10 minutes. This short rest allows the filling to thicken slightly and the crust to set so it doesn’t collapse when scooped. Serve hot, spooning down through the crust to scoop up the creamy vegetables beneath.

To keep the spirit of a depression-era, penny-pinching dinner while adding flexibility, think of this recipe as a template. Any condensed cream soup can stand in for the mushroom: cream of chicken, celery, or potato all work and will subtly change the flavor. If you have odds and ends of cooked meat—shredded chicken, diced ham, or ground beef—stir up to 1 cup into the vegetable mixture to make the pie more protein-rich without changing the basic method. For a slightly heartier, more fibrous texture under the crust, swap part of the frozen vegetables for canned, well-drained chickpeas or white beans. If you don’t have a commercial baking mix, you can approximate 1 cup by combining 1 cup all-purpose flour with 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder and 1/4 teaspoon salt; then add just enough water to make the same thick, drop-biscuit-style batter. To emphasize the golden, glistening crust, brush the top lightly with a bit of milk or oil before baking, if available. You can also bake this in smaller individual ramekins for faster cooking and more dramatic crust peaks—start checking around 20 to 25 minutes. Finally, if your pantry is truly bare, you can reduce the vegetables to 2 cups and the milk to 1 cup; the pie will be a bit saucier but still bakes up into that signature unidentifiable golden crusted mass.