Shepherdess Pie

It's turned cold again, so I thought I'd post a quick, cheap and easy comfort food recipe that all the family love (well maybe not love, but the kids will eat it, without moaning too much!)

• 1 portion of pasta sauce
• 1 grated carrot
• 1 cup of tinned or frozen of sweetcorn
• 50g/2oz dried red lentils
• 1 cup of vegetarian/vegan mince (ground beef-style crumbles) or a tin of drained beans
• Mashed potato
• 75g/3oz grated cheese/vegan cheese (optional)

Serves 4

Make up the pasta sauce, adding the lentils and carrot before simmering.

Meanwhile boil your potatoes for the mash - When cooked, drain and mash with a drop of milk and 25g of the cheese.
When the sauce is cooked, add in the sweetcorn and mince/beans and stir.

Put the sauce into an oven proof dish, top with the mashed potato the remaining cheese.
Cook for 30-40 mins at 180 C/Gas 4, until the cheese is lightly browned.

Alternatives: Add a glug of red wine, chilli sauce or a stock cube to the sauce for extra flavour.
You can also use the sauce to make lasagne or bolognese.
Vegan version: Make the mash with a spoonful of dairy free spread and season with paprika and herbs for flavour or some nutritional yeast flakes. 

Suitable for freezing.