Black Garlic Vegan Shepherds Pie

This vegan version of a hearty Shepherd's Pie uses our sweet Black Garlic cloves to dial up the flavour of the lentil and vegetable filling, along with dried porcini mushrooms (available in supermarkets and some health food stores). It is warming, filling comfort food at its best, and will satisfy confirmed meat-lovers, as well as those who enjoy a vegan lifestyle. It's also a great way to maximise your veg intake, if you're simply trying to get plenty of nutritious vegetables and fibre into your diet.

Ingredients

• 1 kg Maris Piper potatoes
• Dairy-free milk, eg soya milk
• Celery, finely chopped
• Leek, finely chopped
• 5 garlic cloves, crushed or finely chopped
• Ground cumin, 3 tablespoons
• Ground coriander, 2 tablespoons
• Sweet paprika, 1 tablespoon
• Extra virgin olive oil
• 2 stalks of rosemary, leaves stripped and chopped
• 2 bay leaves
• Fresh parsley leaves, finely chopped
• 2 tablespoons tomato purée
• 300g raw green lentils
• 1 litre vegetable stock
• 200g garden peas
• 2 carrots, diced
• 20g dried porcini mushrooms
• 50g (1 tub) Black Garlic Ready To Eat Cloves
• 2-3 tablespoons plain flour
• Salt & pepper to taste

Method

1. Peel and chop the potatoes, and cook them in a saucepan of boiling, salted water until just soft. Drain and mash with dairy-free milk, and set aside.
2. While the potatoes are cooking, chop the celery and leek, and gently fry with the crushed garlic in a few glugs of olive oil.
3. Meanwhile, in a separate pan, heat the spices with 5 tablespoons of olive oil for few minutes until fragrant.
4. Once the vegetables are well softened (about ten minutes), add the spice paste, chopped herbs, tomato purée, lentils, stock, peas, carrots and porcini mushrooms. Cook for twenty minutes, adding more stock if the mixture looks at all dry.
5. In a small pan, heat four tablespoons of olive oil and add three tablespoons flour. Cook for a few minutes, then stir this vegan roux into the vegetables to help bind the mixture together. Taste, and season with salt and pepper if necessary.
6. Tip the vegetable mix into a deep baking dish, and scatter the black garlic cloves over the surface. Cover with mashed potato, drizzle with olive oil and grill for ten minutes in a hot oven to brown the potato.