Shepherd’s pie

Method

1. Mince or chop the leftover lamb.
2. Heat the butter in a heavy-based saucepan. Add the onion, carrots, celery and garlic and sauté over a low heat until the vegetables soften. Add the lamb – cooked or raw – to the pan with the bay leaf and thyme.
3. Add the port and stock, together with the salt and pepper. Bring to the boil, then lower the heat and simmer gently for 20 minutes. Taste and adjust the seasonings if necessary. Stir in the cornflour paste and simmer for a further 5 minutes until the sauce thickens. Remove the pan from the heat and stir in the parsley.
4. To make the mashed potatoes, bring them to a boil in a large saucepan of salted water. Simmer until tender, then drain. Add the butter and salt and mash until smooth. For this dish, you don’t need the potatoes to be super-smooth, so don’t worry about using a mouli or potato ricer; a masher or even a fork will do.
5. When ready to bake the pie, preheat the oven to 200ºC. Spoon the meat mixture into a large baking dish. Spoon the mashed potato on top and use a fork to roughen up the surface. If you’re feeling fancy, you can pipe the potato on. Either way, brush the surface with melted butter and bake for 25–35 minutes, or until the filling is hot and bubbling and the potato topping is golden brown and crunchy. Serve straight away with buttered peas and tomato sauce.