Vegetarian Cottage Pie

250g red lentils, washed and cooked
Vegetable oil
2 medium sized black aubergines, sliced lengthways
1 onion finely diced 
2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1 red pepper, diced
1 yellow pepper, diced
1 tsp cumin seeds, ground
½ tsp ground cinnamon
½ tsp ground ginger
1tin chopped tomatoes
1tbls tomato puree

Topping
½ cauliflower, broken into florets & lightly roasted
2 carrots, roughly sliced and cooked salted water
1 clove roasted garlic
50-100ml semi-skimmed milk

Heat the oil in a pan, when hot add the aubergine slices in batches, cook until crispy remove and drain*. In the same oil add the onion,garlic and peppers and sauté for 3 minutes. Add the lentils and spices, stir well and cook for 2-3 minutes, stir to ensure the mix does not stick. Add the tomatoes, stir well and cook for 20 minutes until the sauce reduces.
Layer the lentils and aubergines in alternating layers in a dish, finishing with a layer of aubergine.
Blend the carrots, cauliflower, garlic and milk in a food processor, season then spread over the top of the aubergines. Sprinkle a little grated cheese on the top if you like, then bake for 25 minutes at 200C. allow to rest for 10 minutes before cutting and serving.

*I tried both grilled and fried aubergine and the fried was clearly better, but grilled would be fine if you are trying to reduce fat content.

Make this into a vegetarian moussaka by replacing the mashed vegetable topping with a creamy cheese sauce.