Chicken and lentil cottage pie

• Serves 4

• Preparation time: 25–30 minutes

• Cooking time:

Ingredients

1 tablespoon olive oil
400 g lean chicken breast fillets, chopped
2 cloves garlic, crushed
320 g drained and rinsed tinned lentils
2 tablespoons lemon thyme leaves, plus extra to serve
1 tablespoon finely chopped rosemary
2 cups (500 ml) salt-reduced chicken stock
1 cup small basil leaves, plus extra to serve
½ cup chopped flat-leaf parsley, plus extra leaves to serve
80 g cheddar, finely grated

MASH
300 g broccoli florets, chopped
300 g peeled celeriac, chopped
2 tablespoons olive oil margarine
2 tablespoons chopped chives

Method

1. Heat the olive oil in a large saucepan over high heat. Add the chicken and garlic and cook, stirring occasionally, for 3 minutes or until light golden. Add the lentils, thyme, rosemary and stock and cook, stirring occasionally, for 10 minutes or until cooked through and the sauce has reduced by half. Remove the pan from the heat. Stir in the basil and parsley and season to taste with freshly ground black pepper.

2. Meanwhile, to make the mash, steam the broccoli and celeriac together for 10 minutes or until tender. Transfer to a bowl. Add the margarine and mash until smooth. Stir in the chives and season to taste with freshly ground black pepper.

3. Preheat the oven grill to high. Spoon the chicken mixture into a 5 cm deep, 20 cm x 12 cm flameproof baking dish. Top with the mash and sprinkle evenly with the cheese. Cook under the grill for 4–5 minutes or until bubbling and golden. Rest for 5 minutes, then serve topped with the extra lemon thyme, basil and parsley leaves.

Notes

Recipe from CSIRO Low-Carb Every Day by Professor Grant Brinkworth and Pennie Taylor ($34.99, Pan Macmillan)