Mushroom and Lentil Cottage Pie
S and I do a meat free meal one night a week. It happens to be Monday, for #MeatlessMonday. There are many movements, like #SundaySupper but meatless, that promote eating one meatless meal a week. Even Paul McCartney – ya know…as in the BEATLES Paul McCartney – has a meat free website. Imagine that!
I don’t know why we started doing a meatless meal. Well, I don’t REMEMBER why. I KNOW why; it’s healthy. Those that follow a low meat diet have lower risk of cancer, reduce heart disease, fight diabetes, curb obesity, and improve your diet. Ya know. All that good stuff.
S wanted to do a fish day every week, but fish in this area isn’t always fresh, and isn’t always tasty. Unless you pay a small fortune, it’s frozen fish at beast; not the tastiest of choices.
I suggested a meatless meal one night a week. He was game for trying it out. That was quite a few months ago. I didn’t think it would stick, but it has. I am enjoying trying to come up with recipes that aren’t cliche vegetarian meals like eggplant Parmesan, numerous tofu concoctions, and just plain ole veggies.
I’m trying to make meals that we would normally eat with meat into a form of meat free mail. I’ve made eggplant sloppy joes, portobello wellingtons, Greek style pizza, and red pepper & quinoa enchiladas. Those are just a few of the adventures we’ve had in doing a meatless meal one day a week.
I honestly thought it would peter out; we’d get bored or he’d be starving, but with meals like this one? How can you NOT want to dive right into that mash potato-y, tomato-y, lentil-y goodness topped with mushrooms and veggies? So, try it! Try a meatless meal one day a week and see how you feel. You’d be amazed at the health benefits alone of cutting those 6 to 8 ounces of meat out of your diet.
Mushroom and Lentil Cottage Pie
A hearty and meat free version of the traditional classic, Mushroom and Lentil Cottage Pie won't have you missing the meat. It's packed with hearty goodness and tons of flavor!
Ingredients
- 1 cup lentils, dried
- 3 cups mushrooms, sliced
- 1 cup onions, diced
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 2 cups vegetable broth
- 12 ounces tomato paste
- 5 sprigs fresh thyme
- 3 cups potatoes, peeled and diced
- 1/3 cup skim milk
- 2 tablespoons margarine
- Salt and pepper to taste
- 14 ounces mixed vegetables, drained
Instructions
- Soak lentils in a large bowl of water 8 hours or overnight. Drain. Place in a large pot of cold water and bring to a boil. Simmer 1 to 1 1/2 hours or until lentils are tender. Drain and set aside.
- Return the pot to the stove, coat with cooking spray, and heat on high. Add mushrooms, garlic and onion. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the mushrooms have released their juices.
- Combine vegetable broth with the tomato paste and stir well to combine.
- Add the lentils, broth mixture, and thyme to the pot. Simmer until thickened. Remove thyme sprigs and keep warm.
- Preheat oven to 350.
- Place the potatoes in a pot of cold water and bring to a boil. Cook until fork tender. Drain.
- Place the potatoes in a mixing bowl. Add the butter and stir until melted. Lightly mash the potatoes with the blades of a hand mixer, then beat until the potatoes are light and fluffy, adding milk, salt and pepper as needed.
- Pour the lentil mixture into a 9 by 13 baking dish. Top with the vegetables then the potatoes; making sure to spread the potatoes to the edge of the pan. Bake at 350 for 30 to 45 minutes or until hot and bubbly. Allow to cool slightly before serving.
Nutrition Information
Yield
8 servingsServing Size
1Amount Per Serving Calories 201Total Fat 4gSaturated Fat 1gTrans Fat 1gUnsaturated Fat 3gCholesterol 0mgSodium 257mgCarbohydrates 37gFiber 8gSugar 11gProtein 9g
Mushroom and Lentil Cottage Pie
A hearty and meat free version of the traditional classic, Mushroom and Lentil Cottage Pie won't have you missing the meat. It's packed with hearty goodness and tons of flavor!
Ingredients
- 1 cup lentils, dried
- 3 cups mushrooms, sliced
- 1 cup onions, diced
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 2 cups vegetable broth
- 12 ounces tomato paste
- 5 sprigs fresh thyme
- 3 cups potatoes, peeled and diced
- 1/3 cup skim milk
- 2 tablespoons margarine
- Salt and pepper to taste
- 14 ounces mixed vegetables, drained
Instructions
- Soak lentils in a large bowl of water 8 hours or overnight. Drain. Place in a large pot of cold water and bring to a boil. Simmer 1 to 1 1/2 hours or until lentils are tender. Drain and set aside.
- Return the pot to the stove, coat with cooking spray, and heat on high. Add mushrooms, garlic and onion. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the mushrooms have released their juices.
- Combine vegetable broth with the tomato paste and stir well to combine.
- Add the lentils, broth mixture, and thyme to the pot. Simmer until thickened. Remove thyme sprigs and keep warm.
- Preheat oven to 350.
- Place the potatoes in a pot of cold water and bring to a boil. Cook until fork tender. Drain.
- Place the potatoes in a mixing bowl. Add the butter and stir until melted. Lightly mash the potatoes with the blades of a hand mixer, then beat until the potatoes are light and fluffy, adding milk, salt and pepper as needed.
- Pour the lentil mixture into a 9 by 13 baking dish. Top with the vegetables then the potatoes; making sure to spread the potatoes to the edge of the pan. Bake at 350 for 30 to 45 minutes or until hot and bubbly. Allow to cool slightly before serving.
Nutrition Information
Yield
8 servingsServing Size
1Amount Per Serving Calories 201Total Fat 4gSaturated Fat 1gTrans Fat 1gUnsaturated Fat 3gCholesterol 0mgSodium 257mgCarbohydrates 37gFiber 8gSugar 11gProtein 9g
I made this tonight and it was so good! I put part of it into a pie shell and sprinkled a little cheddar on top.Turned out great!
This looks so great and hearty. I love when meatless meals are just as comforting as those with meat!
We make a lentil and mushroom cottage pie as well. We actually have found we love it just as much as its beef counter part.
I agree, how could you NOT want this for diner??
I wonder if I could convince my family to eat this! They like lentils and potatoes!
Love this meatless cottage pie!The delicious meaty mushrooms and lentils sound so so good!
I've never heard of cottage pie. Where has this been all my life? It is a must try. Love lentils!
Great flavors you've got here under a pile of creamy potatoes, Christie. I don't think we'd even miss the meat!
I love experimenting with different cottage pie fillings. This sounds great!
Great combo Christie!
Your cottage pie looks and sounds outstanding, Christie!
BTW Thank you, thank you for knowing who the Beatles are…I was in a study group yesterday with people a few years younger =) I mentioned the Beatles and was greeted with blank smiles and stares…Yikes!
I love how you talk about the benefits of eating meatless once a week! It almost makes me want to give it a try. If only I could convince Hubby. Hmmm. When we eat meatless it's usually the standards like eggplant parmesan, or my Roasted Veggie Manicotti. But we do that every once in awhile, and I am happy about that. Heck, I'm lucky when we don't eat fast food half of the time. HUGS
Perfect looking comfort food. I love lentils, yum.
What a fantastic vegetarian cottage pie! I love it! It sounds really tasty!
This sounds fantastic and would make a great, healthy dinner! Yum!
Hi there. Just browsing through the Happy Kids, Inc: Bloglovin' Blog Hop and found your blog. Now following you via Bloglovin' and would love if you popped along to my blog and maybe even followed back!
Bel
http://www.journeysaremydiary.com
http://www.bloglovin.com/blog/11779597
There are so many ways to turn your favorite meaty meals into meat-free…this is a great example!
Your cottage pie sounds fantastic! I'm wondering if the mashed potato topping is enough to convert the hubby to a lentil lover. No worries, I could eat the whole thing!
What a beautiful and creative dish! I love it!!!
What a great combo of yumminess!! I have to try lentils that's it I'm doing it!
I want THAT for dinner! Actually, Sir Paul introduced Meat-Free Monday in the UK in 2009-2010! The MM movement has been around since 2003! I found this artistic graph pretty interesting http://www.meatlessmonday.com/images/photos/2013/10/MMtimeline_850pxtal.jpg