Ingredients.

For the filling:

A few tbsp of olive oil

2 onions, diced

2 carrots, diced

2 celery sticks, diced

4 large garlic cloves, minced

2 portobello mushrooms, or handful of any mushroom you like, roughly chopped

150g frozen peas

300g vegan mince, I use Beyond Meat

1 tsp each dried oregano & thyme 

100ml red wine

1 tin green/brown lentils, drained & rinsed

1 heaped tsp marmite

1 tbsp tomato paste

1 tbsp soy sauce

600ml vegetable stock

3 tsp gravy granules, I use Bisto

Salt & pepper, to taste

For the mashed potato:

1-1.2kg Potatoes, such as Maris Pipers, peeled & diced into approx. 1cm cubes

250ml vegan single cream substitute, I use Oatly ‘Creamy Oat’

1/4 tsp ground nutmeg

2 bay leaves

2 garlic cloves

50g plant butter, cubed, plus a little more for the top

Salt & Pepper, to taste

Equipment.

2 large saucepans

1 (ideally non-stick) frying pan

1 small pan

Sieve

Potato ricer, or potato masher (or a fork!)

Large oven-proof baking dish

Knife & chopping board

Method.

1. In a large saucepan, cover the potato cubes with cold water and add 1tbsp salt. Bring to the boil and simmer gently for around 10mins or until the potato is just soft and can be squashed with the back of a spoon. Be careful not to over-cook them as the potato will absorb water and give you a very watery mash

2. Meanwhile add the cream to a small pan along with the nutmeg, bay leaves, garlic, salt & pepper. Bring to a simmer and continue until the volume reduces by half. Once reduced, take it off the heat and leave the flavours to infuse until it’s needed later

3. Drain the potato cubes and return to the pan with the lid on to steam dry whilst you prepare the filling. The residual heat from the pan & hob will be sufficient so you can turn the hob off

4. Pre-heat the oven to 230c (fan)

5. Sweat the onions, carrot, celery & garlic in a few tbsp of olive oil for around 15mins. Keep stirring and if it catches just add a splash of water

6. Meanwhile, fry the mushrooms in a splash of olive oil in a separate pan on a very high heat. The aim is to caramelise the mushrooms and evaporate all the water in them to concentrate their flavour

7. Turn the heat down a touch and add the vegan mince, thyme & oregano, breaking up the mince and letting it brown for about 5mins

8. Add the mince and mushrooms to the pot with the vegetables, and pour in the red wine. Simmer until the alcohol has evaporated from the wine. This usually takes just a few minutes on a high heat, but you’ll know it’s done when the strong smell of wine & alcohol has gone

9. Whisk the gravy granules into the hot stock and add to the pan along with the lentils, peas, marmite, tomato paste & soy sauce

10. Put the lid on and leave to simmer gently whilst you finish the mash

11. Pass the potato cubes through a ricer. If you do not have a ricer you can mash them with a masher or fork, but the texture will not be quite as smooth and fluffy

12. Pass the infused cream through a sieve to remove the garlic, bay leaves etc. Push the softened garlic through the sieve with a spoon to extract as much flavour as possible

13. Add the warm, infused cream and butter cubes to the mash and whip it together until smooth. This works best when everything is still hot, so it’s best to work quickly with making the filling. If you find the potato has gone cold, reheat the cream and pour it over the butter to help it melt slightly and incorporate into the mash easier

14. Carefully pour all the filling into a large, oven-proof dish. Spoon the mash on top of the filling and use the back of a fork to even it out and create some ridges.

15. Top with a few little knobs of butter and cook for around 20-30min until the top is golden brown and the filling is bubbling nicely. Leave to cool for 10mins or so before serving