This week for me is packed full of work meetings, community events, a quick trip to Detroit and ends with the IMT Des Moines Half Marathon on Sunday! (which will really end up being a 20 mile training run...). I get tired just thinking about what lies ahead.
Once we got home from a lovely Nebraska wedding today, I whipped up what I was hoping would be a quick dinner. But preparing dinner + unpacking + loving on two pets who have been owner deprived for so long does not equal a relaxing dinner preparing experience. However - the end result was good, and mostly worth the effort.
Veggie Shepherd's Pie with Mock Mashed Potatoes
Sorry for the horrid photo - I was hoping to have this out of the oven quickly enough to utilize the last rays of natural light, but that did not happen.
I was inspired to make this dish after catching the last few minutes of 30 Minute Meals at the hotel this weekend. I loosely followed the recipe, but ended up with a dish that was (I am guessing) far from the original.
For the filling::
3 medium protabelle caps - cleaned & chopped
1 cups white mushrooms - cleaned & chopped
3 cloves garlic - smashed
2 T olive oil
1/2 t dried thyme
4 medium carrots - chopped
1 small sweet onion - chopped
3 T worcestershire sauce
1 1/2 cups veg broth
4 t cornstarch
1 cup frozen peas
2 handfuls spinach (about 2 cups)
Pinch nutmeg
Salt & pepper to taste
Heat oil in a dutch oven over medium heat. Add mushrooms and garlic, cook 10 minutes. Add carrots and onions, season with salt, pepper and nutmeg and cook 5 minutes. Stir in worcestershire sauce (I would use less than 3T next time or eliminate it all together) and broth. Bring to simmer. Whisk in cornstarch to thicken. Add peas and spinach - stir until spinach wilts.
For the topping::
1 head cauliflower
1 cups great northern beans
3 cloves roasted garlic
1/2 cup cheddar cheese, plus more for topping
Steam cauliflower until soft. In a food processor, pulse beans and garlic until smooth. In a bowl, add cauliflower and mash. Stir in beans, cheese and salt and pepper to taste.
Top your filling mixture with the mock mashed potatoes and sprinkle with more cheese. Broil in the oven until cheese in nicely browned. Serve with honey-whole wheat biscuits.
Honey Whole Wheat Biscuits
These might have been my favorite part of the meal!
I used::
1 cup whole wheat pastry flour
1.5 t baking powder
2 T honey
5 T water
3 T canola oil
pinch salt
Mix all ingredients. Drop onto a cookie sheet (makes about 4) and bake in a 375* oven until golden brown, about 12 minutes.
I have to admit that I lost all hope for this meal when I began preparing the topping, but was pleasantly surprised with the final result. I do feel that the flavor from the worcestershire sauce was too strong, so like I mentioned above, I would reduce or remove next time I make this dish. I might also eliminate the spinach from the recipe - but that is just a personal preference - Nic and I are not big cooked greens type of people.
The biscuits were my favorite! Nic didn't care for them as he thought they were dry and lacked flavor, however he did admit he tasted the honey after I told him there was honey in them. Of course these would be better made with butter, but alas - that rarely makes an appearance in our house.
Wedding recap up next
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