Thanksgiving was Thursday, and by Saturday morning we’d been milking Thanksgiving leftovers for breakfast, lunch, and dinner, so it was time to throw everything together in a baking dish for Shepherd’s Pie! I make one with Thanksgiving leftovers every year, and each time my Shepherd’s Pie is different depending on what I have left. This year I had extra sweet potatoes and it really rounded out the dish by adding some sweetness! Also, my husband and I had already devoured our Tofurkey, so I used Wednesday night’s leftovers of Nate’s Meatless Meatballs in marinara sauce as the “meat” base for the dish. This took the place of traditional ground beef in tomato paste which is in standard Shepherd’s Pie. Below is the recipe, which is all approximate since it came straight out of the leftover containers in the fridge!
Vegetarian Thanksgiving Leftovers Shepherd’s Pie
Ingredients
- About 6 Nate’s Meatless Meatballs in marinara sauce
- 3/4 C candied yams (I peel and cube 3 lb of sweet potatoes and cook in a saucepan on medium for 20 minutes with white sugar, brown sugar, and butter)
- 1/2 C cooked frozen corn kernels
- 1/2 C frozen pearl onions
- 1/4 C frozen peas
- 2 C leftover mashed potatoes
- 1 C shredded cheddar cheese
- 1 T butter (I use Earth Balance)
Directions
Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Grease a square 9 inch baking dish and set aside. In a small saucepan, reheat the meatballs in marinara sauce, smashing slightly to create crumbles. In a medium sauté pan, reheat the yams and corn until warm. Add the frozen pearl onions and frozen peas and heat until thawed. Mix meat mixture with vegetable mixture and spoon into greased baking dish. Place leftover mashed potatoes in a microwave safe bowl and heat until spreadable, about 1 1/2 to 2 minutes on high. Spread mashed potatoes on top of meat and vegetable mixture. Top with shredded cheddar and dot with 1 T of butter. Bake until edges of potatoes have browned and sides are bubbly, 20-25 minutes.
The Portly Vegetarian 