Vegetarian Shepherd's Pie with Lentils

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5 from 9 votes

Vegetarian Shepherd's Pie with Lentils

A hearty, cozy vegetarian shepherd's pie recipe with lentils and creamy mashed potatoes. Ultimate veggie comfort food.

Prep Time15

Cook Time1

Total Time1 15

Course: Dinner

Cuisine: Canadian

Keyword: Cottage Pie with Lentils, Lentil Cottage Pie, Lentil Shepherd's Pie, Meatless Shepherd's Pie, Vegetarian Shepherd's Pie with Lentils

Servings:

Author: Jennifer Pallian BSc, RD

Ingredients

For Filling

2 tbsp butter
1 medium onion finely chopped
1 large stalk celery finely chopped
2 cloves garlic minced
2 medium carrots peeled and diced
1 ½ cups dry green lentils (or canned green or brown lentils and skip water)
¼ tsp black pepper
5 cups water
½ cup whipping cream
½ cup whole milk
2 tsp salt or to taste
3 tbsp minced parsley plus more for topping

For topping

3 medium russet potatoes
1 cup whole milk
3-4 tbsp butter
salt and pepper to taste

US Customary - Metric

Instructions

Melt butter in a large pot or dutch oven over medium heat. Add onion and celery and sauté until soft. Add garlic and cook a minute more, then stir in carrots, lentils, pepper and water. (Salt is intentionally left out at this point, it prevents legumes from softening.)
Cover and bring to a boil, then reduce heat to low and cook, mostly covered, until very tender, about 35 minutes. Stir in cream and milk, then season with salt and stir in parsley. Add a splash of water if the mixture is dry - you want it quite saucy.
Cook the potatoes in salted, boiling water until tender, then mash with milk and 3 tbsp butter. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
Spread lentils into a 2-litre (2-quart) casserole dish. Spread the mashed potatoes on top. Dot with last bit of butter, then bake at 375 until golden on top, about 20 minutes. Sprinkle with more parsley, if desired.

Notes

Flavor Boosters: add a little splash of umami-packed worcestershire sauce or tamari/soy sauce in the lentil filling instead of more salt if you find it needs more seasoning at the end.

Vegan Shepherd's Pie: To make this a vegan lentil shepherd's pie, simply substitute the butter and cream in the recipe for vegan alternatives such as vegan butter and barista oat milk (which is creamier than regular oat milk). This recipe is already vegetarian, so it's an easy switch to make it dairy-free, and it will still taste just as hearty and delicious.

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