GRIM REAPER’S pie

This rustic-elegant vegetarian shepherd’s pie is the perfect main course for an All Hallows’ Eve feast with a dark interior and flame-like top, but this hearty dish made with black caviar lentils, red wine gravy and mashed sweet potatoes will keep you cozy all winter.

Ingredients:

¾ cup dry black caviar lentils

1 garlic clove, smashed

1 bay leaf

2 pounds peeled sweet potatoes, coarsely chopped (approximately 4 potatoes)

⅓ cup grated Parmesan cheese

6 Tablespoons butter

1 Tablespoon heavy cream

½ cup diced red onion (approximately ½ a red onion)

⅓ cup diced carrots (1-2 carrots)

1 cup diced cremini mushrooms (approximately 6 caps)

2 Tablespoons minced garlic (4-5 cloves)

1 Tablespoon minced fresh sage

1 Tablespoon fresh thyme leaves

1 Tablespoon tomato paste

1 Tablespoon all purpose flour

⅓ cup dry red wine

1 cup vegetable stock

1 Tablespoon olive oil

Salt, to taste

Pepper, to taste

Prepare the lentils. Add ¾ cup black caviar lentils, 1 garlic clove, and 1 bay leaf to a sauce pan. Cover with 1 inch of water. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer approximately 25 minutes until lentils are tender. This should yield around 1.5 cups cooked lentils.

While lentils are cooking, bring a pot of water to a boil. Add sweet potatoes and boil until tender when pierced with a fork. Drain water.

While lentils and potatoes are cooking, prepare the gravy. Heat 1 Tablespoon butter and 1 Tablespoon olive oil over medium heat. Add diced carrot and red onion. Cook until beginning to soften. Add diced cremini mushrooms. Cook until mushrooms begin to brown. Add minced garlic and cook 30 seconds more. Season vegetables with salt and pepper. Stir in sage and thyme. Add 1 Tablespoon tomato paste and 1 Tablespoon flour. Stir for around 1 minute until all vegetables are coated and the flour begins to stick to the bottom of the pan. Use red wine to deglaze the pan scraping any browned bits from the bottom of the pan. Slowly add vegetable broth stirring continuously to incorporate the flour and tomato paste. Let simmer approximately 2 minutes until gravy begins to thicken. Remove from heat. Once lentils are finished cooking, remove bay leaf and garlic clove; drain off any extra water. Stir lentils into the gravy. Season with additional salt and pepper to taste.

Prepare the mashed sweet potatoes. Add the cooked sweet potatoes to a bowl with 5 Tablespoons butter, the cream, and the Parmesan. Mix until smooth adding additional cream if mixture seems too thick. Season with salt and pepper.

Assemble the shepherd’s pie by placing the lentils in gravy in an oven safe dish then covering with mashed sweet potatoes. Drizzle or spray with olive oil. Place under a low broiler until sweet potatoes start to crisp up and brown on the edges.

For my presentation here, I divided the lentils in gravy evenly between 4 ramekins. I used a pastry bag fitted with a 1M tip to pipe sweet potato stars on top of the lentils.