Monday Mealprep- A Baby-Friendly Fish Stew and Vegan Shepherd's Pie!

Now that Finn is eating solids I'm obsessed with making meals that we both can eat.

(The reaction I'm looking for but for something, you know, slightly healthier!) 

I'm sharing these two meals together because they use similar ingredients so you can save yourself time by making them both in the same mealprep day or week. They are also both heavy on the sweet potato, which both Finn and I love. If you're not a superfan like we are, you can skip the sweet potato in the stew or swap out for a white potato in the Shepherd's pie.

 
If you do decide to make both, here is your Grocery list:

1 white or sweet Onion
1 large head of Garlic
1 lb minimum of frozen white fish ( I used cod)
1 can each Kidney beans and cannelloni beans
1 bunch Celery
1 bag of Carrots
1 bag each Frozen peas and carrots
2 medium sized Sweet potatoes
1 can of crushed tomatoes
1 box of low sodium Veggie broth
1 Can of tomato paste
1 bunch of fresh or spoonfuls of dried Parsley to taste
(You likely have this already, but you'll also need water, cooking oil, 1 tbsp of butter or alternative, along with dashes of Salt & pepper to taste)

Vegetarian Shepherd's pie

I tried to get a picture but we ate it too quickly.... sooo if that's any indication, just trust me it's delicious. Here is a generic photo of a Veggie Shepherd's pie that I stole from the internet so you can see what we're making here: 

 (Thank you, Good Housekeeping! #imnotafoodphotographer) 

Here's what you'll need: 

1/2 your onion

2 cloves of  Garlic

1/2 can each Kidney beans and cannelloni beans1

4 stalks of chopped Celery

1 cup of Frozen peas and corn

2 chopped carrots

1 medium sized Sweet potato (personally, I like to leave the skin on, and just avoid giving it to my kiddo unless it's small enough for him to eat) 

1/4 cup Veggie broth

1 Can of tomato paste

1 tbsp butter

Salt & pepper to taste

Part One--- Make your sweet potato mash

Boil a large saucepan of water (enough to cover your sweet potato) with salt.

Add potatoes and boil slightly covered until potatoes are soft. 

When potatoes are soft, drain your water and mash your sweet potatoes with the broth and butter or butter alternative. 

Part Two--- Make your base 

Sautée 3 cloves garlic, 1/2 the onion in a pan.

Add chopped carrots, celery, sautée until soft.
Rinse beans and add 1 cup of each to skillet
Add tomato paste, peas, corn
Stir until well combined and fragrant

Spoon your base into a large casserole dish, cover with the sweet potato mash and cook for 25 minutes at 375

Savory Fish Stew:

 
I stole this from the NYTimes cooking section. Or really, I got inspiration from this recipe. They suggest adding wine, doing a bouquet garni, making a fresh anchovy paste.... none of which I have time for or want to do. I just used veggie broth, skipped the anchovies, drank the wine, and the flavors still turned out amazing.

You'll need: 

1/2 white or sweet Onion

3-4 cloves of garlic

lb minimum of frozen white fish ( I used cod)

2 chopped Carrots

1 cup each Frozen peas and carrots

1 medium sized Sweet potato

The rest of your box of low sodium Veggie broth

1 Can of diced, low sodium tomatoes

1 bunch of fresh or spoonfuls of dried Parsley to taste

3 cups of water

Cooking oil (coconut or avocado oil would be fine) 

Salt to taste

In a large pot, sautée 3 cloves garlic, the other half of your onion, and 3 carrots. Add the rest of your veggie broth, the can of tomatoes, and chopped sweet potato. Simmer for about 30 minutes

Clean and prep a few pieces of cod or other white fish. If you want to marinate it in some lemon, salt, and pepper, good for you. After the potatoes are soft, add the fish, corn, peas, parsley, and salt/pepper to taste. Simmer for another 15 minutes or until fish is flakey. Allow to cool and serve.