Cottage pie with tasty vegetable topping

A healthy twist to a favourite family dish

• Preparation: 15 mins
• Cooking: 30 mins
• Serves: 4

What you need:

Topping:

• 500g potatoes, peeled and cut into chunks
• 1 large carrot, sliced
• 1 medium parsnip, sliced
• 250g swede, cut into chunks
• 400g extra lean minced beef
• 1 onion, finely chopped
• 1 carrot, finely chopped
• 100g mushrooms, sliced
• 1 teaspoon dried mixed herbs
• 1 OXO beef stock cube
• 2 tablespoons cornflour, blended with 2 tablespoons water
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper

What you do:

1. Cook the potatoes, carrot, parsnip and swede in a large saucepan of lightly salted boiling water until tender, about 20 minutes.
2. Meanwhile, heat a large saucepan and add the minced beef, a handful at a time, cooking it over a high heat until seared and browned. This is important to give a good flavour.
3. Stir in the onion, carrot, mushrooms and mixed herbs. Add 400ml (14 fl oz) water and bring up to the boil. Crumble in the OXO cube, then simmer, partially covered, for 20 minutes.
4. Preheat the grill and warm a large baking dish under it for 1-2 minutes. Meanwhile, drain and mash the potatoes, carrot, parsnip and swede, seasoning with a little salt and pepper.
5. Stir the blended cornflour and add to the mince mixture, stirring until thickened. Season if needed, then tip into the baking dish. Spoon the mash on top, spreading it out to cover the mince. Grill until browned, then serve.

Handy cook's tip:

Make the mash with equal quantities of potato and butternut squash, for a change

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