Lentil & Veggie Cottage Pie

GF / Vegan

One of my long-time favourite dinners is Shepherd’s Pie. When we were very young, Mom would set up the meat grinder and have us turn the handle over and over, mincing leftovers of roast beef, followed by onion and carrot. Mixed with some peas and gravy, then topped with potatoes, it was delicious, robust and nutritious.

For local events, we have been using cottage pies as easy individual servings for lunches, serving 100+ guests. They usually have about 10 oz of filling and are topped with potato, which is what makes them “cottage” pies. For any of these lunches, about 30% of the guests request vegetarian mains. Along with making sure we have choices that are Gluten and Dairy-Free, we try to just go with GF / Vegan choices.

To offer a robust, warming dish, this recipe has been made multiple times for fall and winter events, and always sells out.

Although it seems to have quite a few steps, it all comes together within an hour, can be made ahead and stored covered in the fridge for up to two days before baking. Just take it out of the fridge an hour ahead and increase the baking time by 10-15 minutes. Internal temperature after baking should be a minimum of 74°c before letting it rest for 10 minutes before serving.

Recipe (Print Version)

2.5 litre dish – about 7-8 cm / 3” deep

Ingredients:

1 kg / 2# russet potatoes
200 gr / 1 c brown lentils
2 bay leaves
3 c / 750 ml water
¼ c olive oil (2 T + 2 T)
1 large onion – about 200-250 gr / ½ lb.
3 carrots – about 350 gr / 2/3 lb.
2 stalks celery
250 gr frozen peas (about 500 ml / 2 c)

Sauce Ingredients:

1½ t salt
½ t pepper
3 cloves garlic – pressed
2 T tomato paste
1 T apple cider vinegar
1 T tamari
1 T cornstarch
Pinch of dried chilies
250 ml / 1 c hot vegetable stock

Instructions:

Lightly oil the 2.5 litre baking dish.
Preheat oven to 400°

Sauce:

Whisk together sauce ingredients in order given and reserve.

Potatoes:

Peel potatoes, cut into even size chunks, 1½” pieces
Barely cover with water, add a Tablespoon of salt, and bring to a boil.
Turn down to low and simmer until easily broken with a fork. About 20 minutes.
Drain and mash.
Add in 2 T olive oil, plus 1 t salt.
Stir well, using a fork. Hold for using as the crust.

Lentils:

Put lentils, water and bay leaves into a pot.
Bring to a boil, immediately reduce to a simmer.
Cook for 20-25 minutes until tender, but not until mushy.
Drain, remove bay leaves, reserve in same pot.

Prepare vegetables:

Dice onion, carrots and celery into similar size pieces, about ½”.
Portion out peas and reserve ready to add to recipe.
Heat 2 T oil over medium heat, in a large pot or skillet.
Add in vegetables, sauté for 15 minutes. Do not brown, reduce heat if necessary. Carrots should be fork-tender.

Combine:

Add sauce to drained lentils.
Add sauce and lentils to sautéed vegetables, stir to combine.
Add in peas, stir to combine.
Spoon filling into prepared baking dish, smoothing to level.

Potato Crust:

Add spoonfuls of mashed potatoes over the top, use a fork to spread to edges, creating an even crust.
Rough up the top of the potatoes with fork, this will encourage browning.

Bake: