This article was written for Annabel & Grace, which is now part of Rest Less.
This recipe for Shepherd’s Potato caught my eye as it is a vegetarian (& vegan) take on the very popular meat dish, Shepherd’s Pie.
I love a baked potato especially at this time of year. I also love mashed potato – perhaps it is my Irish heritage. Nigella Lawson once said on one of her cookery programmes that she could eat a bowl of mashed potato as a meal.
Shepherd’s Potato
Ingredients: makes 6
- 6 large baking potatoes
- 2 tbsp olive oil, plus a little extra
- 1 white onion
- 1 celery stick
- 1 medium carrot
- 2 garlic cloves
- 3 sprigs fresh rosemary, plus extra to serve
- 3 sprigs fresh thyme
- 2 tsp wholegrain mustard
- 3 tbsp tomate purée
- 1 tbsp soy sauce
- 150g chestnut mushrooms
- 120g cooked puy lentils (home-made or from a packet)
- 250ml vegetable stock
- 1½ tbsp dairy-free butter
- 2 tbsp nutritional yeast
- 1 tsp chilli flakes, to serve
- salt and black pepper
How to prepare:
Preheat the oven to 200℃
Put the potatoes on the baking tray and prick them with a fork. Drizzle with the 2 tbsp of olive oil, season with salt and pepper, then rub them all over until completely covered. Put the tray in the hot oven and bake for 45-60 minutes, until soft.
Peel and finely chop the white onion. Trim the leaves and root from the celery, then finely chop. Trim the carrot, peeling it if you like, and finely chop.
Add a little oil to the hot pan. Add the chopped onions, celery and carrots and fry until they start to soften, about 5-10 minutes. Peel and crush the garlic into the pan. Remove the leaves from the rosemary and thyme by running your thumb and forefinger from the top to the base of the stems (the leaves should easily come away), finely chop and add to the pan. Season and cook for a further 2-3 minutes. Add the mustard, tomato purée and soy sauce and stir. Reduce the heat to a light simmer.
Chop the mushrooms very finely and add them to the pan. Add the lentils, stir everything together and cook for 5-7 minutes. Pour in the stock and mix.
When they’re done, take the potatoes out of the oven and let them cool down for a few minutes. Use a sharp knife to cut a round lid off the top of each potato. Scoop out the fluffy middles, leaving at least a 1com lining all around the insides, and transfer to a bowl. Add the dairy-free butter, nutritional yeast and a pinch of salt and pepper to the bowl and mash.
Fill each potato to the brim with the mushroom mince and top with a large dollop of mashed potato. Put the tray in the oven and bake for 10-15 minutes to get the topping nice and crispy. Take the tray out of the oven. Sprinkle each potato with chilli flakes, the remaining chopped rosemary and some pepper before serving.
This recipe comes from the cookbook, BOSH! by Henry Firth and Ian Theasby. It has lots of recipes suitable for vegans.
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More mouth filling vegetarian and vegan recipes here