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Autumn vegetable shepherd's pie
( SERVES 4 )

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Photo by Tam West

2.8 / 5 FROM 6

Who needs meat? This tasty vegetarian shepherd's pie has a cheesy mash topping and uses a variety of late-summer crops.

1 large	Agria potato, peeled and evenly chopped
1	Kumara, peeled and evenly chopped
2	Parsnips, peeled and evenly chopped
1 scoop	Sour cream, or use a large knob butter
1	Onion, chopped
2 stalks	Celery, chopped
2	Capsicums, choose coloured ones, chopped
5 cloves	Garlic, crushed
1 knob	Ginger, a large one, grated
½	Eggplant, evenly chopped
2	Courgettes, evenly chopped
6	Brussels sprouts, evenly chopped
100 g	Shiitake mushrooms, evenly chopped
1 tsp	Paprika, use 2 if you wish
1 tsp	Cumin
½ tsp	Cayenne
1 bunch	Thyme, chopped
3	Bay leaves
¼ cup	Cornmeal flour
1 can	Black-eyed peas, including the brine, or use another canned legume
1 cup	Stock
1	Corn cob, kernels removed
1 splash	Lemon juice, and chopped coriander to season
1 large handful	Grated cheese, or as much as required for topping
1 sprinkle	Breadcrumbs, for topping

To make the mash, boil the chopped potato, kumara and parsnip in salty water until tender, drain, add a large dollop of sour cream or butter and mash until smooth. Season to taste.
Gently fry onion, celery and capsicums, crushed garlic and a large knob of grated ginger until soft. Add chopped eggplant, courgettes, brussels sprouts and shiitake mushrooms, 1-2 tsp paprika, the cumin, cayenne, chopped thyme and the bay leaves and cook until just tender. Stir in cornmeal flour. Add black eyed peas (or other canned legume) including the brine, stock and the corn kernels. Simmer, stirring often, until liquid reduces and thickens. Remove bay leaves. Season with lemon juice and chopped coriander.
Spoon the vegetable mix into a baking dish and cover with the mash. Top with cheese and breadcrumbs and bake in a moderate oven until golden and bubbling.