In keeping with the one pot theme, I made a Cottage Pie today for dinner. I had made the mashed potatoes the other day when steaming potatoes for dinner that night. However, I may have undercooked the potatoes slightly and also did a poor mashing job, so they weren't the most creamy topping. For future reference, I think I'll err on the side of overcooked mashers for the top.
I've made versions of vegetarian cottage pie before but I claim no expertise of the subject. For me it is a mince meat (or in this case, Yves Meatless Grounds) filling with a mashed potato topping. As far as other ingredients? Well, being a British dish I think peas should be in there. I often make mine with leeks instead of onion because I associate them with British food more. And I also have plenty of leeks in the garden to use right now so it is an easy decision. Typically I will put carrot and celery in as well. For tonight's dish, I added mushrooms and a little frozen corn too. In taking a cue from earlier this week I added a literal hand full of spinach leaves. (About 1/3-1/2 cup chopped.) This was more for nutrients than flavor. A couple of cloves of garlic rounded out the list.
It seems like all recipes on the Internet call for Worcestershire Sauce and some broth. I added both, which included a mock beef broth. I think previously I have omitted both of these ingredients. Most call for butter too as the fat to saute in. I think I have usually used oil, but I used butter this time, and I cannot say it made a difference. I used some rosemary and thyme to season it. The end result had a really great texture filling, but seemed to be missing something in the flavor department. The mashers, as previous stated were not ideal but Jennifer corrected her plate with a bit of sour cream to bring them back to life.
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