Is there anything more comforting than a cottage pie on a cold night? I think not. However, this popular classic originally involves meat as well as other heavyweights such as butter and milk and flour which makes it not suitable if you are gluten free. My plant-based version uses lentils as base as well as carrots and celery for flavour which also makes it a very economical dish. My kids normally hate lentils but they absolutely love this dish and I hope you do too! My trick is to blend up the lentil ragu before using it in the pie. You could skip this step if you don’t mind a coarse texture (I actually love it).

The lentil base for this pie freezes terrifically so I suggest making a big batch and then freeze some to whip up a comforting cottage pie on a week night!

Serves 4

Ingredients
Lentil base
2 onions (leave out of low FODMAP)
2 cloves garlic (leave out of low FODMAP)
3 carrots, washed and finely sliced or cubed
3 celery sticks, finely sliced
500g dried lentils, any variety works well
400g diced tomatoes
1 cup tomato paste
1 cup red wine
1l vegetable stock

Mashed potato crust
approx. 800g potatoes, washed and diced
Flavourings of choice (nutritional yeast, salt, plant milk…)

Method
Sauté the onion and garlic (if using) in a large cast-iron pot in a bit of water or stock until fragrant. Add carrots and celery and cook until softened. Add lentils, diced tomatoes, tomato paste, red wine, and stock. Bring to a simmer, then cook until the lentils are fully cooked and the ragu has a nice bolognese-style texture (about 45-60 minutes).
You can now let the ragu cool and then freeze for up to 3 months or use it straight away for this pie. If you need a smooth texture for fussy eaters, blend the ragu with a stick blender until nice and smooth.
To make the mashed potato, steam or boil the prepared potatoes until very soft. Add flavourings if using. Nutritional yeast and salt are great. If you are not concerned about fat content you can use plant milk, vegan margarine and/or vegan cheese. Mash with a potato masher.
Scoop lentil base into 4 portion-size baking dishes. Top with mashed potato. Either serve straight away or broil in the oven to get a nice crust.

Enjoy! Nat xoxo