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veggie mince shepherds pie with cauliflower mash topping

31 January 2015 by Dominic Franks

… boy i’m glad it’s the weekend… every day this week i’ve had to quite literally crowbar my head from the pillow in the mornings, plaster on a caffeine smile and grit my teeth through the day until at last I can get home and get back into bed.  Clearly this isn’t the secret to feeling better but if one has a mountain to climb then one can’t do it from bed… so The Viking and I have promised ourselves a weekend in pyjamas which should re-charge the batteries nicely.  It’s quite amazing how that holiday to California seems like a lifetime ago and someone else’s lifetime at that… I think the best remedy to exhaustion is last days, lots of crappy TV and plenty of soft food.  All the best comfort food is soft; sausage and mash, macaroni cheese, sticky toffee pudding.  There’s something about the memory of baby food that takes you back to a time when you didn’t even have to worry about chewing…

veggie mince shepherds pie with cauliflower mash topping
as comfort food goes this dish is pretty much at the top of the pile for me. Not only is it warming and tasty in a wholly fulfilling way but it’s also a breeze to make so that the process from start to finish is a comforting as the eating, which I feel is an added bonus… i’ve gone with a veggie mince because the options are just so good now that I can confidently make this without trying to ‘cheat’ meat-eaters into thinking i’m serving meat… and of course it’s healthier and I don’t have to make a separate dish for The Viking… the cauliflower, suede and potato mash is such a lovely combo and delivers all your veg in one tasty topping… oh and a little note on the use of Bisto powder in here.  I adore Bisto.  It tastes of a vintage childhood I never had and adds great colour to a dish like this so don’t knock it, I won’t hear a word…

… a word of warning when baking this dish, don’t forget to place a large baking tray on the rack beneath the pie as the gravy will bubble out and drip and burn on the bottom of your oven which you really don’t want…

for the filling
1 onion – finely chopped
8 mushrooms – finely chopped
1 garlic bulb – crushed
fresh rosemary and thyme
90g fresh or frozen garden peas
1 x 350g pack of Quorn mince
1/2 litre of good quality vegetable stock

2 teaspoons of roasted onion Bisto gravy powder
1 small glass of white wine (optional but very nice and the alcohol cooks off)
1 tablespoon tomato ketchup
A little butter and olive oil
Salt and pepper

for the cauliflower mash
1 head of cauliflower – chopped
1/2 swede – peeled and chopped
3 medium potatoes – peeled and chopped
butter and salt and pepper

in a large pan gently heat the butter and olive oil and when melted add the onions and mushrooms and let them sweat gently for about 8 minutes, then add the garlic and herbs, season well and let it sweat gently again for another 5 mins

add the Quorn mince, stir and let it cook for another 5 mins then add the stock, gravy powder, tomato sauce and white wine and let it bubble away on the hob for 10 mins whilst you make the mash.

steam the vegetables until very soft and then mash together with plenty of butter and seasoning

pour the mince into an ovenproof dish and then carefully spoon the mashed veg on top. Fork through with some wavy lines and then bake in the oven set to 180C for 20 mins until the top of golden and crispy and the filling is bubbling up!

eat and of course, enjoy!

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Filed Under: Vegetarian Tagged With: cauliflower, comfort food, gravy, mash, mince meat, quorn mince, shepherds pie, suede, vegetables

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Comments

  1. Kate Glutenfreealchemist says

    31 January 2015 at 4:06 pm

    Oh yes! A perfect dish for a pyjama weekend for sure! I LOVE the cauliflower mash and will definitely be adopting that one…. sounds wonderfully comforting and delicious.

  2. Jessica Mennie says

    31 January 2015 at 6:22 pm

    Looks delicious! I'll need to try this soon. Thank you for sharing. X

  3. Treat and Trick says

    1 February 2015 at 3:34 am

    This is absolutely delicious and totally new to me. Will try it soon….

  4. Couscous & Consciousness says

    1 February 2015 at 9:42 am

    Oh, I can relate to this. We have a long weekend here, and even though it's the height of summer, the weather has turned cool and rainy, so I too am nursing my exhaustion by spending the weekend in my PJs, on the sofa, watching movies – so far I've checked The Drop, Wild, What We Did On Our Holiday, and Before I Go To Sleep off my list!! Despite the slight drop in temperature, it's still too hot to cook, so it's all about salads for me right now, but I'm definitely going to give this a try when some seriously cool weather rolls around.

  5. belleau kitchen says

    1 February 2015 at 2:51 pm

    the cauliflower mash is so good… and brings you three veg in one!

  6. belleau kitchen says

    1 February 2015 at 2:51 pm

    you're very welcome Jessica, thanks for the comment x

  7. belleau kitchen says

    1 February 2015 at 2:51 pm

    well, always good to try something new and healthy!

  8. belleau kitchen says

    1 February 2015 at 2:52 pm

    agh yes, i've just dragged myself out of bed… massive sic fi fan so i've watched all the classics!

  9. Karen S Booth says

    1 February 2015 at 5:01 pm

    Good for you two, I wish I could have had a weekend in pyjamas, but it's been full steam ahead decorating the kitchen and the cookery school bit of the house! FABULOUS shepherd's Pie too, and I am a big fan of Quorn.

  10. Santana Foods says

    2 February 2015 at 7:33 am

    Favourite! How about adding some cheese?

  11. Katie says

    2 February 2015 at 7:35 am

    I love the sound of the cauliflower mash. Great way to get a bit of extra veg in there

  12. Susan Lindquist says

    2 February 2015 at 1:20 pm

    Yum … a warm stick to your ribs meal! Perfect for sitting by the fire and knoshing in deep bowls with spoons … love that cauliflower mash !

  13. Manu says

    2 February 2015 at 2:18 pm

    Shepherds pies is so esay to make and so delicious to taste!!!
    xox

  14. Katie @ Recipe for Perfection says

    2 February 2015 at 2:32 pm

    You cracked me up here: “takes you back to a time when you didn't even have to worry about chewing…” 🙂

  15. H. says

    2 February 2015 at 4:16 pm

    This looks delicious !
    My housemate is Dutch and she's been asking me to make her a few English dishes (she was baffled by the yorkshire pudding in my Sunday roast!)
    Thanks for sharing this recipe

    Hayley x

    http://thelifestylemenu.co.uk/

  16. Mark Willis says

    2 February 2015 at 7:20 pm

    Just pondering what you mean about “having a mountain to climb”… I hope you are not working too hard! The dish is certainly one that would go some way towards restoring morale. Of course I am a meat-eater so would prefer beef to quorn, but that's a minor detail. The overall result looks very appetising.

  17. Sally Sellwood says

    4 February 2015 at 10:05 am

    Persuasive though your defence of Bisto powder is, I think I'll just add marmite and worcestershire sauce (my 'go to' shepherds pie flavourings) if that's OK?

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About Dom In The Kitchen

My name is Dominic, I am a cook, food writer and creative event producer. I write the food blog Dom In The Kitchen and also write a monthly recipe column for Lincolnshire Life Magazine and Good Taste Magazine. I also run creative event production company The Persuaders, producing global events for brands since 1997. I am based both in the small village of Belleau in Lincolnshire and the smaller village of London! Read More…

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