Kitchen Sink Shepherd's Pie
The name of this recipe may be redundant, since the origins of shepherd’s pie involved using up leftover ingredients. I’m calling it “Kitchen Sink Shepherd’s Pie” because it’s based on my original Vegan Shepherd’s Pie recipe, with a few alterations to accommodate a different set of ingredients I had on hand. The result was so good, I decided to publish a new recipe for it! Savory, hearty, flavorful, potatoey, and well-balanced, without feeling heavy. This recipe is a must try! 392 calories per serving.
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons refined coconut oil or other neutral flavored oil
- 1 medium white onion diced (about 2.5 cups)
- 1 medium carrot diced
- 1/2 teaspoon dried crushed rosemary
- 1/4 teaspoon dried dill
- 1/4 teaspoon celery seed
- 2 1/2 cups vegetable broth
- 1 cup uncooked green or brown lentils
- 1/2 cup corn (preferably fresh but can use canned or frozen)
- 1.5 lbs yellow or gold potatoes
- 1/4 cup unsweetened almond milk (preferably homemade *see note below)
- 1 tablespoon yellow mustard
- 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- ⅓ cup almond pulp *see note below, could use breadcrumbs instead
- 1 tablespoon + 2 teaspoons tomato paste
- 1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
- Paprika and dried parsley for garnish
Instructions
- Pre-heat the oven to 400 degrees F. Heat a medium/large saucepan over medium heat. Dice the onion and carrot. Add the oil, onion, carrot, rosemary, dill, and celery seed to the pot. Saute for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add the broth, lentils, and corn. Bring to a simmer, reduce heat, cover, and simmer for 20 minutes.
- While the lentils are cooking, prepare the potatoes. Peel and cut into quarters (or halves for smaller potatoes, pieces should be roughly the same size). Place in a pot with enough water to cover the potatoes. Bring to a boil, and boil until a fork moves through fairly easily, about 10 minutes. When they are finished cooking, mash them with the milk, mustard, garlic powder, pepper, and salt. I use a food processor for this (*see note below).
- When the lentils are finished cooking, stir the almond pulp, tomato paste, and vinegar into the pot. Pour the lentil mixture into a 9x5 loaf pan (non-stick metal works best.) Press the mixture gently into the pan and smooth out the top. Top with mashed potatoes. This works best if you drop the potatoes by the spoonful on top, and then spread evenly once all the potatoes are on there.
- Garnish the top with paprika and dried parsley. Place in the pre-heated oven and cook for 1 hour. The top should have a nice golden color, and the edges should be dark in some places. Allow to cool for 10 minutes before cutting in and serving.
Notes
Almond pulp is a byproduct of almond milk. Making your own is very easy, and in my opinion, homemade tastes better in savory dishes. Simply blend 1 cup of water with ¼ cup raw almonds in a blender. If you’re not using a Vitamix, I recommend soaking the almonds for several hours first. After blending, strain the liquid into a bowl through a nut milk bag or cheesecloth. Squeeze all the liquid out. What’s left in the bag or cloth is the pulp. It’s high in fiber, protein, and many other nutrients, and adds thickness to this dish. Alternatively, you could use breadcrumbs or almond flour instead.
I don’t typically use a food processor for mashed potatoes because I find it makes them gummy, but I actually prefer that consistency with Shepherd’s Pie. The potatoes have a more whipped and creamy consistency. If you prefer a more typical mashed potatoes consistency, you may want to mash them by hand.