Festive Veggie Shepherd's Pie

I made this for some Veggie guests last Christmas and everyone said how good it tasted . . . I made it as 'special' as I could by cooking the pies in thier own festive and individual shiney red ceramic pots and making sure I bought the best, freshest ingredients . . . and wine lol! I wanted them to know that I put the same effort into making their food special and as much as a 'treat' as the meat eaters . . . which I sometimes feel doesn't happen at Christmas unless the Chef is a Vegetarian themselves. What was also good is that I made them up on Christmas-Eve, put them in the fridge over night, and cooked them in the oven the next day! Sorted!



Ingredients:

1 tbsp olive oil
1 large onion, halved and sliced
1 Clove Garlic chopped fine
2 large carrots (500g in total) keep the carrots chucnky when chopped
2 tbsp fresh thyme chopped
2 tbsp fresh taragon
2 tbsp of concentrated tomato puree
1 dash of Worcestershire sauce (vegetarian sort)
200ml of good red wine
200g can of good quality chopped tomatoes
200ml vegetable stock
300g green lentils soaked / cooked off (or tinned, drained and washed)
300g of frozen or fresh 'minced' soya (this is optional, if not adding, increase the amount of lentils)
1kg sweet potatoes, peeled and cut into chunks
25g butter
Salt and Pepper to season
Pinch of Sweet Paprika
Pinch of ground Cinnamon
4tbsp of cream
150g vegetarian mature cheddar, grated

Method:

1. Heat the oil in a frying pan, add the chopped garlic, then fry the onion until golden. Add the carrots and all but a sprinkling of thyme and taragon. Pour in the 200ml of red wine, 200ml of vegetable stock, 300g of soya mince, season with salt and pepper, a pinch of sweet paprika and stir in the 200g of tinned tomatoes, the 2 tbsp of concentrated tomato puree and simmer uncovered for 20 mins to reduce the liquid and thicken the stock. Tip in the soaked green lentils then cover and simmer for another 20 mins until the carrots still have a bit of bite and the lentils are pulpy. Make sure the sauce is thickend, if it is a little thin add a small bit of Beurre manié (equal soft butter and flour kneeded together before adding, easy to make - don't add too much, and allow to cook through till the sauce is thickened) - you can use veggie gravy granuals to thicken instead. Alternatively, thin the mixture with a little water if needed.

2. Meanwhile, peel and boil the sweet potatoes for 15 mins until tender, drain well, then mash with the butter, add a little cream, a sprinkle of sweet paprika, a pinch of cinnamon and season to taste.

3. Pile the lentil and soya mixture into several individual pie dishes, spoon the mash on top, smooth down, then sprinkle over the vegetarian cheese, and the remaining thyme and taragon. Tip: use individual pie pots, (try to get some nice ones, it is Christmas lol) and don't fill them too full so that they don't overflow when cooked and are easy to clean before presenting them to the table. The pies can now be covered and chilled until needed the next day.

4. Heat oven to 190C/170C fan/gas 5. Cook for 20 mins if cooking straight away, or for 30 to 40 mins from chilled, until golden and hot all the way through. Make sure the mash is golden brown on top!

5. Clean the pots up as much as possible. Place the individual pies in their pots on a large plate.

6. Serve with all the veggie Christmas trimmings from the table.

Alice35