Ingredients
- 1 x 250g pouch of Merchant Gourmet Tomatoey French Puy & Green Lentils
- 90g Merchant Gourmet Whole Chestnuts
- 200g Merchant Gourmet Chestnut Puree
- 600g pumpkin or butternut squash, peeled and cut into 2.5cm cubes
- 4 sheets filo pastry
- 1 large onion, finely sliced
- 3 tbsp vegetable oil plus extra for brushing
- 200ml vegetable stock (plus extra if necessary for puree)
- 1 tbsp chopped rosemary
- 1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
- Salt & freshly ground pepper
Instructions
- Pre-heat your oven to 220c / Rack Position on upper middle shelf.
- Toss the diced pumpkin with 2 tbsp oil and a pinch of salt. Roast on a low sided tray for 20 minutes
- Put 200g of the cooked pumpkin with the chestnut puree in your liquidiser. Blend for 2-3 minutes until the puree is smooth and mousse like. If the puree is too thick, add hot stock 1 tbsp at a time. Season to taste
- Get a shallow pan, add the onion and 1 tbsp of oil, cover and soften the onions for 6 minutes, then turn up the heat and fry them until golden for 4-5 minutes. Add the lentils, 200ml vegetable stock, chestnuts, rosemary and remaining pumpkin. Bring to the boil then take off the heat. Season to taste.
- Spread the lentil mixture into 2 small oven proof dishes. Spoon the puree into the centre of each. Use a spatula to gently smooth towards the edges a little. Don’t worry if the puree sinks into the lentils a little.
- Lay two sheets of filo pastry on your work surface. Sprinkle them with smoked paprika. Brush all over with olive oil.
- Scrunch the pastry up into the size of the dishes. Try and keep as much of the pastry as possible off the chickpea puree’s surface because the moisture will make it go soft.
- Brush and sprinkle two more sheets of pastry. Put a second sheet of filo on top of each pie to make doubly sure that it’s crisp. Bake for 12-15 minutes until hot and golden.
Good to know!
We topped this Shepherd's Pie with crisp filo pastry but you could also top it with mashed potato.
