Mary Berry Mushroom, Lentil and Double Potato Jumble
Mary Berry's vegetarian lentil and mushroom tray bake, as seen on the BBC2 series Simple Comforts, features a double potato and creamy cheese topping. Winter comfort food at its finest.
From the book
Simple Comforts
Heart-warming comfort dishes from the nation's favourite cook
With easy, family-friendly recipes as well as all-out weekend feasts
Including chapters full of indulgent bakes and sweet treats
Introduction
A hearty meat-free dish, this is just right for feeding a gang of hungry people. It’s served in one dish and can be prepared ahead, ready to pop in the oven when it’s nearly time to eat. And it’s so full of flavour the carnivores won’t miss their meat!
Ingredients
| 2 tbsp | olive oil |
| 2 | onions, roughly chopped |
| 1 | garlic clove, crushed |
| 175g (6oz) | dried Puy lentils |
| 150ml (5fl oz) | white wine |
| 1½ tbsp | sun-dried tomato paste |
| 600ml (1 pint) | vegetable stock |
| 8 | sun-dried tomatoes, chopped |
| 1½ tbsp | Worcestershire sauce |
| 25g (1oz) | butter, plus extra for greasing |
| 500g (1lb 2oz) | chestnut mushrooms, sliced |
| salt and freshly ground black pepper | |
| For the topping: | |
| 350g (12oz) | sweet potatoes, peeled and diced into 2cm (½in) cubes |
| 350g (12oz) | white potatoes, peeled and diced into 2cm (½in) cubes |
| a knob of | butter |
| 1 | garlic clove, crushed |
| 2 tbsp | snipped chives |
| 50g (2oz) | mature Cheddar cheese, grated |
Essential kit
You will need: an ovenproof dish with a capacity of about 1.8 litres (3¼ pints) and measuring about 15 x 25 x 5cm (6 x 10 x 2in). You will also need an ovenproof frying pan or sauté pan with a lid.
Method
1. Preheat the oven to 180°C/160°C fan/Gas 4 and butter the dish.
2. Heat the oil in the frying pan, add the onions and fry for about 5 minutes. Add the garlic and fry for about 10 seconds. Add the lentils, white wine, tomato paste and stock, stir and bring to the boil. Add the sun-dried tomatoes and season with salt and pepper. Cover the pan with a lid and transfer to the oven for about 50–60 minutes or until the lentils are cooked and the liquid is absorbed. Stir in the Worcestershire sauce.
3. Meanwhile, melt the butter in a pan, add the mushrooms and fry over a high heat for a minute. Cover with a lid and cook for few minutes more over a gentle heat. Remove the lid and increase the heat to evaporate the liquid. Season with salt and pepper. Add to the lentil mixture, stir and spoon into an ovenproof dish.
4. Increase the oven temperature to 220°C/200°C fan/Gas 7.
5. For the topping, cook the potatoes in a pan of boiling water for 5–8 minutes until just soft, then drain well. Melt the butter in the empty pan, tip the potatoes back in and add the garlic and chives. Season with salt and pepper and carefully mix to coat the potatoes in the herby, garlicky butter.
6. Spoon the potatoes on top of the lentil mixture and sprinkle with the grated cheese. Bake for about 20 minutes until crispy brown and bubbling around the edges. Serve piping hot, with some green vegetables.
Prepare ahead: Can be made up to a day ahead, up to the final 20 minutes of baking with the topping.
