Name: Vegan shepherd's pie
Prep time: 30 min
Cook time: 1 h 20 min
Total time: 1 h 50 min
Yield: Serves 8 (makes eight individual or two large pies)
Ingredients: 1.2kg floury potatoes such as Maris Piper or King Edward; 50ml vegetable oil; 30g dried porcini mushrooms, soaked in hot water for 15 mins, then drained (reserve the liquid); 2 large leeks chopped; 2 small onions chopped; 4 medium carrots (about 300g), cut into small cubes; 1 vegetable stock cube (make sure it's vegan); 3 garlic cloves crushed; 2 tbsp tomato purée; 2 tsp smoked paprika; 1 small butternut squash peeled and cut into small cubes; ½ small pack marjoram or oregano, leaves picked and roughly chopped; ½ small pack thyme leaves picked; ½ small pack sage leaves picked and roughly chopped; 4 celery sticks chopped; 400g can chickpeas; 300g frozen peas; 300g frozen spinach; 20ml olive oil; small pack flat-leaf parsley chopped; tomato ketchup to serve (optional)

Vegan shepherd's pie

A warming vegan supper with porcini mushrooms, leeks, carrots, and butternut squash, topped with crispy potatoes. It's low calorie, low fat, and perfect for when the nights draw in

1 hr 50 min total 30 min prep 1 hr 20 min cook Serves 8 (makes eight individual or two large pies) 348 cal

Instructions

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1 Put the unpeeled potatoes in a large saucepan, cover with water, bring to the boil and simmer for 40 mins until the skins start to split. Drain and leave to cool a little.
2 Meanwhile, heat the vegetable oil in a large heavy-based sauté pan or flameproof casserole dish. Add the mushrooms, leeks , onions, carrots and the stock cube and cook gently for 5 mins , stirring every so often. If it starts to stick, reduce the heat and stir more frequently, scraping the bits from the bottom. The veg should be soft but not mushy.
3 Add the garlic, tomato purée, paprika, squash and herbs. Stir and turn the heat up a bit, cook for 3 mins, add the celery, then stir and cook for a few more mins.
4 Tip in the chickpeas along with the water in the can and reserved mushroom stock. Add the peas and spinach and stir well. Cook for 5 mins, stirring occasionally, then season, turn off and set aside. There should still be plenty of liquid and the veg should be bright and a little firm.
5 Peel the potatoes and discard the skin. Mash 200g with a fork and stir into the veg. Break the rest of the potatoes into chunks, mix with the olive oil and parsley and season.
6 Divide the filling into the pie dishes and top with the potatotes. Heat oven to 190C/170C fan/gas 5 and bake the pies for 40-45 mins, until the top is golden and the filling is heated through. If making individual pies, check after 20 mins. Best served with tomato ketchup – as all great shepherd’s pies are.