Vegetarian Shepherds Pie

Here's the original recipe by AB.. love this man and his ways. I have made it from the recipe and edited it for vegetarians. Both are tasty.

http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/alton-brown/shepherds-pie-recipe2/index.html

Now for my edit....

Ingredients

For the potatoes:

• 1 1/2 pounds russet potatoes
• 1/4 cup half-and-half (I like to use milk... less fat... still tastes great... good luck with using soy milk over regular though if you're vegan)
• 2 ounces unsalted butter
• 3/4 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 1 egg yolk (if you're vegan or just don't have/like eggs you can omit the egg it's not that crucial)

For the meat filling:

• 2 tablespoons canola oil
• 1 cup chopped onion
• 2 carrots, peeled and diced small
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 package Ivets vegetarian ground meat (Or any vegetarian ground meat you prefer)
• 1 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
• 2 teaspoons tomato paste
• 1 cup vegetable broth
• 1 teaspoon soy sauce or vegetarian fish sauce (extra if you need more salt)
• 2 teaspoons freshly chopped rosemary leaves
• 1 teaspoon freshly chopped thyme leaves
• 1/2 cup fresh or frozen corn kernels
• 1/2 cup fresh or frozen English peas

Directions

Peel the potatoes and cut into 1/2-inch dice. Place in a medium saucepan and cover with cold water. Set over high heat, cover and bring to a boil. Once boiling, uncover, decrease the heat to maintain a simmer and cook until tender and easily crushed with tongs, approximately 10 to 15 minutes. Place the half-and-half and butter into a microwave-safe container and heat in the microwave until warmed through, about 35 seconds. Drain the potatoes in a colander and then return to the saucepan. Mash the potatoes and then add the half and half, butter, salt and pepper and continue to mash until smooth. Stir in the yolk until well combined.

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.

While the potatoes are cooking, prepare the filling. Place the canola oil into a 12-inch saute pan and set over medium high heat. Once the oil shimmers, add the onion and carrots and saute just until they begin to take on color, approximately 3 to 4 minutes. Add the garlic and stir to combine. Add the veggie meat, salt and pepper and cook until cooked through. Sprinkle the meat with the flour and toss to coat, continuing to cook for another minute. Add the tomato paste, veggie broth, soy sauce, rosemary, thyme, and stir to combine. Bring to a boil, reduce the heat to low, cover and simmer slowly 10 to 12 minutes or until the sauce is thickened slightly.

Add the corn and peas to the mixture and spread evenly into an 11 by 7-inch glass baking dish. Top with the mashed potatoes, starting around the edges to create a seal to prevent the mixture from bubbling up and smooth with a rubber spatula. Place on a parchment lined half sheet pan on the middle rack of the oven and bake for 25 minutes or just until the potatoes begin to brown. If the potatoes haven't browned enough after 25min have passed I like to turn the broiled on low for a few minutes. Make sure to watch the dish the entire time it's under the broiler or you'll end up eating burned shepherd's pie. Remove to cool for at least 15 minutes before serving.