Veggie shepherd's pie with sweet potato mash

5-a-day beginners butter carrot carrots cheese chopped tomato chopped tomatoes kids cooking lentil lentils make ahead mature cheddar red wine shepherds's pie sherperds pie sweet potato sweet potatoes thyme vegetable stock vegetarian shepherd's pie

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Ingredients

1 tbsp olive oil

1 large onion, halved and sliced

2 large carrots (500g/1lb 2oz in total), cut into sugar-cube size pieces

2 tbsp thyme chopped

200ml red wine

400g can chopped tomatoes

2 vegetable stock cubes

410g can green lentils

950g sweet potatoes, peeled and cut into chunks

25g butter

85g vegetarian mature cheddar, grated

Method

Heat 1 tbsp olive oil in a frying pan, then fry 1 halved and sliced large onion until golden.

Add 2 large carrots, cut into sugar-cube size pieces and most of the 2 tbsp chopped thyme, reserving a sprinkling for later.

Pour in 200ml red wine, 150ml water and a 400g chopped tomatoes, then crumble in 2 vegetable stock cubes and simmer for 10 mins.

Tip in a 410g can green lentils, including the juice, then cover and simmer for another 10 mins until the carrots still have a bit of bite and the lentils are pulpy.

Meanwhile, boil 950g sweet potatoes, cut into chunks, for 15 mins until tender, drain well, then mash with 25g butter and season to taste.

Pile the lentil mixture into a pie dish, spoon the mash on top, then sprinkle over 85g grated vegetarian mature cheddar and the remaining thyme. The pie can now be covered and chilled for 2 days, or frozen for up to a month.

Heat oven to 190C/170C fan/gas 5. Cook for 20 mins if cooking straightaway, or for 40 mins from chilled, until golden and hot all the way through. Serve with broccoli.