(Gluten Free, Meat Free, Dairy Free | Paleo-Friendly ) I get it. This dish is usually a cosy winter treat, but my Nature’s Window Veggie Box was just screaming ‘Shepherd’s Pie!’ Also, the weather in London has turned very English (rainy/cold) the last few days and has become quite chilly- only reinforcing my need for comfort food. I’ve never tried making a Shepherd’s Pie sans meat, but it turned out to be a fun experiment that was a filling, flavourful delight -so enjoy and feel free to try your own twist on it as well!

Ingredients for Topping

• 10-15 new potatoes (or 4 large potatoes) –you can also easily swap out regular potatoes for sweet potatoes; I just needed to use the potatoes I had from my Veggie Box
• 2 tbsp butter
• Heaping ½ – 1 tsp of hot (or smoky) paprika
• 1 tbsp of garlic powder

Ingredients for Filling

• 1-2 tbsp butter or coconut oil
• 1-2 onion(s), chopped
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 4 carrots, chopped
• 1 courgette (zucchini), chopped
• 1 small head of broccoli, chopped
• 6 button mushrooms, sliced
• 2 handfuls of kale
• 1 large tomato, chopped
• Lentils (I only had about 100g (½ cup) of red lentils in my cupboard, so I used those. However, 300g (1½ cups) uncooked brown or green lentils, rinsed and drained would probably be best).
• 2 bay leaves
• 3 tbsp tomato paste
• 3 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
• Heaping ½ – 1 tsp of hot (or smoky) paprika
• Salt and pepper to taste
• 500 ml (2 cups) vegetable broth
• 2 tbsp arrowroot powder or gluten free flour

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 200C (400F).
2. Throw new potatoes (or chopped large potatoes) into a pot of water and bring to boil. Let simmer for 15-20 minutes or until soft. Drain and place back into pot. Mash with paprika, butter and garlic butter until combined and creamy. Set aside.
3. Spread 1-2 tablespoons of butter or coconut oil in skillet on medium heat.
4. Sauté onion(s) and garlic for 2 minutes. Add in carrots, courgette and broccoli; continue to sauté for 10 minutes.
5. Add in mushrooms, kale, tomato and lentils; cook for 3-4 more minutes and stir regularly to make sure lentils don’t cook to bottom of skillet.
6. Add bay leaves, tomato paste, Worcestershire sauce, paprika, salt and pepper; mix.
7. Taste and adjust seasonings as needed.
8. Whisk the arrowroot powder (or thickening agent such as gluten free flour) into the vegetable broth.
9. Pour the vegetable broth mixture into the skillet with the vegetables; cook for 10 more minutes or until it looks something like this:
10. Pour the vegetable mixture into a 2L (9×13) baking dish (or whatever baking dish fits the amount of mixture you’ve ended up with!).
11. Spread the mashed potatoes on top of the vegetable mixture until it’s fully covered.
12. Bake for 20 minutes (or until topping is browned) and pull the beauty out of the oven to cool before serving.

Notes | Inspiration from Primally Inspired Butternut Squash Sheperd’s Pie