Category Archives: Roasts and Bakes

Shepherdess Pie

This one goes back a long way, probably 20 years.  Proper English comfort food, minus the lamb or beef!  I don’t know where the name came from, or why it is necessarily the female version of the dish once the meat is replaced with lentils, but we absolutely love it  – although it serves 6 (there are 4 of us!), it rarely goes into the fridge for the next day..! 🙂

2014-04-06 18.16.58

5.0 from 1 reviews
Shepherdess Pie
 
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Author:
Recipe type: Bake
Cuisine: English
Serves: 6
Ingredients
  • 6 medium / large potatoes (about 800g-1kg / 28-35 oz)
  • 1 large onion
  • 2 sticks celery
  • 2 large cloves garlic
  • 2 medium carrots
  • A dozen button mushrooms (about 200g/7 oz)
  • 1 cup passata (or pureed canned tomatoes)
  • ½ cup red lentils
  • ½ cup Puy / French blue-green lentils
  • ½ cup frozen corn
  • ½ cup frozen peas
  • 1 heaped tsp vegetable stock powder
  • 2 T tomato paste
  • 1 tsp mixed herbs
  • 2 large bay leaves
  • 2 cups water
  • 1 cup soy milk (approx.)
Instructions
  1. Peel and cut the potatoes into large chunks, put into a large saucepan of cold water and bring to the boil.
  2. Prepare all the vegetables – dice the onion, celery, carrots, mushrooms into small dice (around the same size as peas and corn), and crush the garlic.
  3. Put the onion, garlic, celery, carrot and mushrooms in large casserole pan, and sauté with a splash of water or stock until tender, about 5 minutes.
  4. Meanwhile measure out the rest of the ingredients.
  5. Add the passata, lentils, peas and corn, stock powder, tomato paste, herbs, water and bring to the boil. Simmer, covered, for around 30 minutes. Stir occasionally to check it isn't sticking on the bottom.
  6. Whilst the lentils are simmering, check the potatoes, and once tender, drain well and mash til very smooth with soy milk (or your preference) and salt and pepper.
  7. Transfer the lentils to an oven proof lasagne-style dish, top with the mash and smooth out.
  8. Bake for 20-25 minutes until bubbling and top crisp.
  9. Serve with steamed green vegetables or roasted cauliflower.

 

Mushroom, Leek and Potato Gratin

These have to be three of my most favourite ingredients, so anything with them all has to be a winner in my book!  I came up with this after trying to decide what to cook for dinner.  A quick look in the fridge, and finding I had both leeks and mushrooms which needed eating, and (I always have) potatoes, so….  After Googling for a while I found this recipe by Bits Of Carey and decided to veganise it, making a couple of other changes.   Was really good and a family hit!

2014-04-01 19.45.41

4.0 from 1 reviews
Mushroom, Leek and Potato Gratin
 
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Author:
Recipe type: Bake
Serves: 4-6
Ingredients
  • 6 medium/large potatoes, boiled until just cooked.
  • 2 medium leeks, finely sliced
  • 2 cloves garlic
  • White wine / stock / water
  • 500g brown mushrooms, sliced
  • 500ml soy milk
  • 4 tablespoons cornflour
  • ½ tsp fresh thyme leaves
  • ½ tsp dried rosemary
  • 1 T coconut aminos / soy sauce / tamari
  • 2 T lemon juice
  • Salt and fresh black pepper.
Instructions
  1. Whilst the potatoes are boiling, heat a large frying pan on a medium heat and dry sauté the leeks and garlic for a few minutes until softened. Add a small splash of white wine to stop them sticking.
  2. Add the mushrooms, thyme and coconut aminos, mix in well, and cook until the mushrooms have released their liquid and it has evaporated.
  3. Blend thoroughly the cornflour in a cup with some of the soy milk, then stir it into the pan with the leeks and mushrooms, whisking all the time. Slowly add the rest of the milk bit by bit, then cook off the flour – about 3 minutes. Bring to a gentle simmer, still whisking constantly (I have a wooden whisk which I use in my non-stick pan) to avoid any lumps forming.
  4. Add the lemon juice and test / adjust the seasoning. Turn off the heat.
  5. Once potatoes are just tender, drain and slice into ½ cm slices.
  6. Take a lasagne style dish and place in a very small layer of sauce, (saves needing to use any oil) then top with a half of the potatoes (mine made enough for just 2 layers, but 3 would be nice too!).
  7. Top with another layer of sauce, the rest of the potatoes, then the rest of the sauce.
  8. Place in the oven and bake for 25 minutes or until bubbling and browning on the top. Serve with steamed green vegetables like broccoli and beans.

Lasagne

 

My kids voted this my best ever lasagne and it’s their “favourite ever” meal!
We usually have with salad and a good crusty bread.
The creamy white sauce I use for this is also on this site here.

Lasagne
 
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Author:
Recipe type: Main
Cuisine: Italian
Serves: 6-8
Ingredients
  • 1 medium onion, chopped
  • 2 cloves garlic
  • 1 red capsicum, diced
  • 1 green capsicum, diced
  • 2 medium zucchini, diced
  • 1 medium carrot, diced
  • 1 stick celery, diced
  • 1 can chopped tomatoes
  • 1 375g jar of your favourite tomato based pasta sauce, e.g. basil and garlic
  • 50g Lentils, Red, split
  • 1 teaspoon Oregano
  • 150g Baby Spinach, chopped (or use 4 cubes frozen spinach)
  • 15 leaves basil, chopped
  • 6-8 Wholemeal Lasagne Sheets
  • Creamy White Sauce – 1 batch
  • Optional : fresh breadcrumbs
Instructions
  1. Make the Creamy White Sauce - see other recipes.
  2. Sauté onion, garlic after 5 mins, then add capsicum, carrot, celery, zucchini and let soften – about 15 minutes.
  3. Add tomatoes, jar of sauce, lentils, oregano, baby spinach, and basil, season to taste. Allow to simmer until spinach wilts.
  4. Heat oven to 180 degrees centigrade.
  5. In lasagne dish put a thin layer tomato sauce, cover with lasagne sheets
  6. Layer the 2 sauces and pasta alternately in lasagne dish, topping with 2nd half of white sauce (or 3 layers depending on how thick your layers are)
  7. If liked, sprinkle a cup of fresh breadcrumbs over the top of the white sauce.
  8. Bake for 35-45 minutes. Test with a sharp knife to make sure the pasta is very tender.
  9. Let rest for 10 minutes before serving.

 

Nutritional info: Cals: 280 | Fat: 7g | Protein: 13.5g  | Carb: 34.5g  | Fibre: 10.65g | Sodium:  291mg

Cashew and Mushroom Nut Roast

cashew-nut-roast
Well seeing as Christmas is fast approaching I thought the obvious recipe to share would be the nut roast I make every year.  It has changed a little over the years, the main overhaul 2 years ago when I made it vegan by removing the egg, but also mixing the mushrooms in to the mix rather than as a separate layer, as I found it would always break in two when I sliced it.  This is an OLD recipe.  From a Sarah Brown book called Vegetarian Kitchen published in 1984.  So to say this has passed the test of time is an understatement!

Cashew and Mushroom Nut Roast
 
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Christmassy Nut Roast
Author:
Recipe type: Main
Cuisine: British
Serves: 6
Ingredients
  • 1 medium onion, finely chopped
  • 2 garlic cloves, crushed
  • 225 g mushrooms - finely chopped
  • 225 g cashew nuts
  • 110 g sliced wholemeal bread - for breadcrumbs (in processor)
  • 1 tsp chia, 1 tsp flaxmeal mixed with ⅓ cup water
  • 3 medium parsnips, peeled, steamed or boiled then mashed
  • 1 tsp fresh rosemary, finely chopped
  • 1 tsp fresh thyme, finely chopped
  • ¼ - ½ tsp sage (optional)
  • 1 tsp marmite or vegemite dissolved in 1 cup boiling water / 1 cup vegetable stock
  • salt & freshly ground black pepper
Instructions
  1. Pre-heat the oven at 180 Celsius.
  2. Heat a large frying pan and fry the onion and garlic until soft, adding a splash of water where necessary. Add the mushrooms and continue to sauté until the liquid has been released and evaporated.
  3. Grind the bread into breadcrumbs and place in a large bowl. Prorcess the cashew nuts in the same way until they resemble breadcrumbs, add to the bowl.
  4. Mix in the mashed parsnips and herbs.
  5. Add the fried onions and mushrooms; be sure to scrape the pan so that any remaining liquid goes in, don’t lose that flavour!
  6. Add the chia/flax mixture
  7. Dissolve the marmite in the hot water or stock and add to the other ingredients. Mix very thoroughly and season well. The mixture should be like a thick cake mixture.
  8. Grease a 900g loaf tin or line with baking paper. Spoon the mixture into the tin and press down firmly.
  9. Cover with greased foil and bake for one hour.
  10. When cooked, remove from the oven and let it stand for 10 minutes before turning it out.
  11. NOTES: Timesavers:
  12. Make sure you put the parsnips on to cook first if you haven’t got them cooked already.
  13. Make the dry ingredients first - breadcrumbs, then the ground cashews in the processor, then add to your bowl.
  14. Then use processor again to chop the onion and mushrooms, add that to your frying pan.