Jill's Hit It Out of the Ballpark Recipe

I don't know about you, but I had an energetic weekend full of cooking, organizing, and socializing. Until my head hit the pillow each night, I don't think I sat down on Saturday or Sunday for a minute! Except for when I was blogging and responding to comments on this post, I guess I sat down then.


An when I was on Facebook. I sat down then too. In fact, someone on FB this weekend asked me if I knew of any real entrees that didn't include tofu. I immediately thought of this recipe that I knew I would be posting soon. It comes from HGK contributor Jill, and here's what she has to say about it:


"I was looking to make a hearty dish for a cold winter night. Since Shepard's Pie is typically lamb  (hence the name  Shepard) I thought it was more appropriate to call it Farmer's Pie. Chock full of lentils and veggies and topped with sweet potatoes, it  blends savory and sweet in a perfectly delicious way. I made it for a group of people (all foodies) who devoured it. My  husband loved it too. He said that it was absolutely his favorite dinner ever! It's now officially  in my regular rotation. Very easy to make!"


I was one of the so-called-foodies that tasted the Farmer's Pie and I can vouch for Jill's enthusiasm about it. It's a winner! Of course, I would double all of the ingredients (except for the maple syrup) and bake it into a 9"x13" casserole.


Jill's Shepherd's Farmer's Pie
serves 6

Printable Recipe

Top layer:

2 12.75 ounce cans sweet potatoes (vacuum packed such as Taylor’s brand)

1/4 cup almond milk

3 T maple syrup

Bottom layer:

Frozen apple juice concentrate for sautéing

1 cup diced onion

2 cloves garlic, minced

8 ounces mushrooms, sliced

10 ounces peas, fresh or thawed

1 package Trader Joes pre-cooked vacuum sealed lentils (or about 2 ½ cups cooked lentils)

* If using canned lentils, drain and rinse before cooking

½ cup red wine

2 T low sodium tamari

½ tsp thyme

1 tsp oregano

8-10 ounces baby spinach

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

Using a hand mixer, blend sweet potatoes, almond milk and maple syrup until smooth. Set aside.

Sauté onion on medium heat in a little frozen apple juice concentrate until soft, about 8 minutes. Add garlic and mushrooms and sauté another 5 minutes.

Add peas, lentils, wine, tamari, thyme and oregano. Mix well. Simmer about 8 minutes.

Add spinach in batches until it is wilted.

Spray the bottom of an 11 x 7 or 8 x 8 Pyrex dish.  Pour lentil mixture into pan. Spread sweet potatoes on top of lentils. Bake 35 minutes.