mashed potatoes

Vegan Lentil Shepherd's Pie

Shepherd’s pie is not a food I grew up eating. To be perfectly honest, I had never even heard of it until I married my husband, and he expressed his great dislike for traditional shepherd’s pie. I was in full agreement that the meaty version full of…

Shepherd’s pie is not a food I grew up eating. To be perfectly honest, I had never even heard of it until I married my husband, and he expressed his great dislike for traditional shepherd’s pie. I was in full agreement that the meaty version full of peas, and carrots and what ever else was in there sounded awful. Then recently our friend Deanne had us over for dinner, and served a vegan lentil version of shepherd’s pie, and much to my surprise, I liked it. I actually really, really liked it! Savory lentils and veggies topped with creamy mashed potatoes. What is not to like!!! It took some convincing to get my husband to try it when I decided to make my own, but when I did he ate two helpings!! So the husband is now a convert, the shepherd’s Pie ban has officaly been lifted, and I will now be adding this deliciously easy dinner to our regular rotation! Thanks again Deanne for proving us wrong!

INGREDIENTS:

  • 1 cup dried green lentils

  • 2 carrots, finely diced

  • 1 small onion, finely diced

  • 2 celery stalks, finely diced

  • 2 cups chopped mushrooms

  • 3 cups vegetable broth

  • 1 teaspoon salt

  • 2 teaspoons minced garlic

  • 1/2 teaspoon black pepper

  • 1 teaspoon dried thyme

  • 1 teaspoon dried rosemary

  • 1 teaspoon Vegetable Better Than Bouillon (optional, but adds flavor)

  • 3 large russet potatoes

  • 2 tablespoons vegan butter

  • 2 tablespoon vegan cream cheese

  • splash of milk

  • salt and black pepper to taste (for the potatoes)

INSTRUCTIONS:

  1. Heat 2 teaspoons of oil in a large pot or dutch oven over medium heat.

  2. Add the onions, carrots, and celery and allow to cook unit the onions are translucent and soft.

  3. Add the mushrooms and garlic and cook for a few minutes.

  4. Add the lentils, broth, and spices and reduce the heat to simmer. Let the lentils simmer for about half an hour to 45 minutes or until the liquid has been absorbed and the lentils are soft.

  5. While the lentils are cooking, bring a large pot of water to a boil. Add the potatoes and cook until they are soft and you can poke a fork through them.

  6. Drain water from potatoes and mash using a hand masher or an electric hand mixer, adding in the butter, cream cheese, salt, and pepper. If they seem too thick, add a splash of milk.

  7. Scoop cooked lentils into a pie dish or shallow casserole dish and top with the mashed potatoes.

  8. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Bake the shepherds pie for about 25 minutes.

  9. Garnish with fresh or dried parsley if you like before severing.

If you like this recipe, try these:

“Chicken” Divan with Jackfruit

Loaded Vegan Roasted Red Potatoes

Cheesy Vegan Scalloped Potatoes

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Seitan Lemon Piccata with Mashed Potatoes

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The first seitan I ever leaned to make was a basic, simmered seitan.

If you don’t know, then seitan is basically wheat meat made from vital wheat gluten. And as long as you do not have a gluten intolerance, its an excellent source of vegan protein! It is also really inexpensive so an added bonus for sure!

Noting fussy, just make the dough, divide it, simmer it, and its ready to go.

This seitan works well for all kinds of recipes like this piccata. It is pretty versatile and we use it in fajitas, cheese steaks, fry it up to make wings, stir fry, all kinds of things.

The beauty of it is how easy it is, and how well it freezes! If you have ever made dough of any kind, you can make seitan. There are so many methods for making faux meats but this basic method is still my go to.

I often make 2 batches and toss them in the freezer. I quarter each batch so I can thaw smaller portions quickly for fast weeknight dinners.

If you are feeling like make a more traditional vegan chicken piccata you can try making my easy vegan chicken breast. It really is easy, and although you do bake it verses simmering it, it is a very convincing chicken seitan. And it is very, very simple and easy to make. It does contain soy, so if you are soy free the easy basic seitan is probably a better choice.

This piccata is so flavorful and the seitan gets so nice and crispy on the outside. The buttery, lemony, garlicky sauce is perfection and who doesn’t love a glorious creamy pile of mashed potatoes.

So if you have been looking for the perfect vegan piccata, look no further. And I can not encourage you enough to just make a double batch of the seitan so recipes like this are twice as easy and quick when you are ready to make them!

INGREDIENTS:

  • 1 batch seitan (all 4 pieces) or 4 easy vegan chicken breast cut in half length wise for 8 thin breasts.

  • 2 lemons

  • 3 tablespoons capers

  • 2 tablespoons vegan butter, like Earth Balance

  • 3 tablespoons to 1/4 cup olive or grape seed oil (this amount depends on the size of the pan you are using to fry the seitan )

  • 1 cup vegetable broth

  • 3 tablespoons chopped flat leaf parsley

  • 2 teaspoons minced garlic

  • 1/3 cup four

  • 1/3 cup organic corn starch

  • salt and pepper to taste

  • 1/4 cup white wine (optional)

Mashed Potatoes

  • 6 medium russet potatoes

  • 2 tablespoons vegan butter

  • 1/4 cup vegan cream cheese or vegan sour cream

  • 1/4 cup plant based milk (give or take)

  • salt and pepper to taste

COOKING INSTRUCTIONS:

  1. With a very sharp knife, carefully slice all 4 pieces of seitan into cutlets. You should be able to get about 3 cutlets from each piece.

  2. Mix flour and corn starch in a shallow dish, and dredge the cutlets in the mixture. Make sure you fully coat each piece.

  3. Heat oil in a med/large skillet on medium heat. You may need more or less oil depending on the size of your pan. You need just enough oil in the bottom of your pan to quickly fry each side the seitan cutlets.

  4. Once the pan is good and hot, add the cutlets and cook each side a few minutes, or until they begin to brown and get crispy.

  5. Place finished cutlets on a paper-towel-lined plate.

Mashed Potatoes

  1. Peel, dice, and boil potatoes in a large pot while preparing the piccata sauce.

  2. Once potatoes and soft enough to pierce with a fork, drain the water, and return potatoes to the pot you boiled them in.

  3. Mix in cream cheese or sour cream, and butter. Mash with a hand masher, or use an electric hand mixer.

  4. Add enough milk to get the potatoes to the consistency you prefer using 1/4 cup of plant based milk, give or take.

  5. Add salt and pepper to taste.

Piccata sauce

  1. Wipe out the pan you just used for the seitan.

  2. Reheat the pan on medium heat, and add the 2 tablespoons of vegan butter.

  3. Add the garlic, and wine if using. Let the alcohol cook out of the wine for a few minutes, then add the juice from 1 and 1/2 lemons, vegetable broth, capers, half of the parsley, and salt and pepper to taste.

  4. Let sauce simmer for about 5 minutes on low heat.

Prepare you plates by adding mashed potatoes, topping with a few cutlets, and drizzling the piccata sauce over each plate. Garnish with the remaining parsley and a thin lemon slice (using your remaining half a lemon)

Serves 4 - 6.