Vegetariano Torta del Pastore (Vegetarian Shepherd's Pie - italian stylin')

This is shepherd's pie with a twist; think of it as Carluccio meets English peasant from the 18th Century.  Italian, but slightly hipster.  So not Armani at all.   It oozes Italian flavourings, is rich, red and moist at the bottom, but soft, creamy and fluffy with a crisp on top. What's not to like on a wintery English evening?  It freezes well and the filling is latin enough to style with pasta. And you can add a few gloops of red wine in there too.

This recipe is one I've been making for years and years. It's evolved over time and actually I now use fewer ingredients.  The key idea is to keep a strong tomato flavour, but you can also add courgettes or aubergine - as these really soak up and hold the sweet, saucy garlicky flavour. I used to watch my Mum make shepherds pie, and also spaghetti bolognese. This is a kind of vegetarian melée of both recipes. My Mum actually used to also add a pack of Knorr minestrone soup  to her recipes and I think that's where I got the feel for making my veggie version kind of Italian too. Hence, I give you: Vegetaraian Torta del Pastore.

Ideally I like to eat this with a shed load of grated cheese on the top. But frankly, I'm trying to keep the number of  my heart attacks to a minimum, so I don't indulge myself in this behaviour quite as often as I'd like. Many people manage to be more restrained with just a sprinkle of cheese, so do go ahead if you're confident about your health and/or can control portion sizes. Maybe adding a sprinkle of paprika with the cheese will give it an extra trill or sparkle.

Sometimes I cover half the torte with cheese and the other without. That way your family or guests can fight over which  section they want.

 I am suggesting large quantities here, as I eat some, and freeze some. It's good to make a lot of this stuff as it saves a lot of time when you are busy and stressed out. You can freeze it in trays with mash on top, or put in bags and construct the torte later by de-frosting the sauce and adding freshly cooked mash. I sometimes freeze mash separately too as it survives very well. But there's a limit to what I can cram in my over-filled freezer at the best of times.

So ... enough of the chat .... here is a handy video of how to make it ... and scroll down if you want to the recipe in detail. There's a download available too if you want to print off or read in an easier format.



Stuff to put in

Lentil Mix
Olive oil
2 large onions or 3 medium
2 cups of red lentils - (you can use brown, but the red variety make a better mushier texture and soak up the flavours more)
4 tins tomatoes
I jar Saccla tomato sauce with garlic (one of my weaknesses; sorry but these are pots of magic)
2 - 3 sticks celery
3 carrots
4 cloves garlic or 3 teaspoons lazy garlic
3 tablespoons Henderson's relish*
100g mushrooms and/or 3 baby aubergines
2 tablespoons oregano
1 stock cube

* (A Sheffield delight; you can buy this elsewhere but if not available, then (1) Use a slug of wine, or (2) Lobby your MP; or (3) Look online or (4) Use a dash of tamari instead.)

Mashed Potato 
500g 750g potatoes or 1 - 1.5 kg if you want to freeze some  too. (Red skinned desirée potatoes tend to be best for mashing in my opinion). I love mash so tend to make a lot, but some people might find this a bit greedy. If you mix in a sweet potato or two in there, it's apparently healthier and lower GI.

About 100 - 250 mls oat milk or soya milk

2 tablespoons olive oil - or 2 dessertspoons of vegetable margarine

(If you are OK with saturated fats etc, use dairy milk and butter . You can also add a pinch of salt.  This will be richer and more luxurious but I don't use this stuff as I am following a low saturated fat diet for heart health. I am hoping to live a bit longer than 65).


Optional extras
1 leek finely sliced - to replace one of the onions
1 or 2 courgettes
3 baby aubergines
About 4 medium sized fresh tomatoes

About 200g grated strong cheddar cheese
Pinch of Paprika

What to do

Use a large thick bottomed pan to do all the cooking. 

1. Dice the onions and fry gently to soften in the warmed olive oil.
2. Meanwhile finely slice or dice the carrots and slice the mushrooms. Stir into the mix.
3. Add the garlic, oregano, & leek if using.
4. If using, dice the baby aubergines or courgette and fling them in.
5. Give it all a stir and if things start to stick, add a drop more olive oil or a splash of hot water. (Soon, the mushrooms will reduce in size and ooze liquid so no need to add too much extra liquid).
6. When the mushrooms and aubergine are lightly browned, add the tinned tomatoes and the red lentils.
7. Stir it all through and turn up the heat a little till it boils, and then turn right down again to a simmer.
8. Use an empty tomato tin to dissolve a stock cube in half a tin of boiling water. 
9. Stir the lentil mix and add the stock water.
10. Simmer for about 30 - 40 minutes until all is soft and cooked through. keep a close eye on it and stir from time to time to make sure the mix does not burn or get dry. It should all have a thick tomato sauce.  
11. Taste at least once part way through and add herbs or garlic if you think it needs it. If you like salt, don't add now. Do it at the end or the lentils won't get as soft as you need them. 
12. While the lentils are cooking, wash the potatoes, cut in quarters and place in a saucepan. Cover with cold water and put this to boil. Simmer for 10-20 minutes until soft - a knife should sink in with no effort. But don't let them disintegrate.
13. Drain the potatoes and return to the pan to mash with a drop of olive oil, margerine, butter or  non-dairy spread. Or mash with a few tablespoons of oat milk, soy milk or dairy milk. I go for the non-dairy of everything, just to keep saturated fat to a minimum. 
14. Once mashed, keep warm with a lid on until the lentils are ready. 
15. When the lentils  and carrots are soft, add the Henderson's relish and the tomato paste and warm through for another 5 minutes.
16. Arrange the lentil mixture in an oven proof  dish, e.g. Pyrex, le creuset, or ceramic.
17. Cover this mix with sliced tomatoes if using and then spoon over the mash. (A layer of tomatoes  keeps the lentils nice and moist and stops the lentil sauce soaking into the mash. It's fine without, it's an extra luxury). 
18. Spread with a fork to evenly cover all the mixture with the potatoes. 
19. Now add the cheese if you are still feeling daring,  and then a dash of cayenne pepper to give it extra punch.
20. Place in the oven for about 20 minutes until the top is golden - if you can't wait, just grill it! 

For freezing: 

Don't place food in the freezer while it is warm. 

Wait until it is cold before you put it in the freezer. 

Either: 

You can make up the Torta del Pastore as above and place in freezable trays, well wrapped with cling film and then into a freezer bag. 

To defrost, unwrap and place in the fridge for about 8 hours.

Or

Place the lentil mix into freezer bags - maybe 3 serving spoons per person. If you have made extra, you can freeze the mash in separate bags and layer it all later when you want to use it.

This time I have frozen it in portions of 2 - with 3 large serving spoons per person.  These bags can be microwaved so it's very handy using these. Alternatively I may have the lentil tomatoey mix with pasta next time.

And Finally ... 

For a downloadable copy of the recipe click here.