Lentils replace lamb in this shepherd's pie

My favorite thing about making a vegetarian shepherd's pie has been thinking about that name. Purists know a traditional shepherd's pie needs to contain not the usual ground beef, but lamb - because, of course, that's where the shepherd comes in. Technically, they'll tell you, if it contains beef, it's a cottage pie.

That would be why I've seen a lot of vegetarian versions called "shepherdless pie." And I started to go that way, too.

Then I realized: Why couldn't this mythical shepherd - whose job is to tend the flock, protect it, and help it graze, but not eat it - be vegetarian? Or at least appreciate a vegetarian meal?

The point is, any hardworking shepherd (or farmer or banker or journalist, for that matter) can appreciate the heartiness of this dish, especially during February's chill. I got my lentil-focused version from The Plantiful Table, a new book by Andrea Duclos, the South Florida writer behind the blog ohdeardrea. The brilliance of Duclos' recipe is in the good dose of red wine she uses to braise the lentils (along with mushrooms, zucchini, and more) before layering the mixture with the requisite corn and potatoes in a casserole dish and baking it.

For the top layer, I cobbled together a quick mash from a few large potatoes that I boiled and combined with yogurt, cream, and salt. But this is a perfect use for leftovers, and not just potatoes. You could switch to sweet potatoes in a heartbeat, but this would also work nicely topped with cauliflower, carrot, or parsnip puree.

Just ask yourself: What vegetables would a shepherd crave at the end of a long day in the pastures?