A Late St. Patricks Day Treat! Shepherds Pie!

Hey everyone! I'm sorry I've let a whole month slip by without any posts! I have been very busy with work and I actually got a new job to show for all my efforts! With my financial future secured and one less stressor out of the way I can now focus on getting my food blog back on a regular schedule. My goal is to update once a week and ideally on Saturdays but we'll see what works best for me. For today I bring you a pretty simple dish that most people don't ever think to make... Shepherd's Pie. 

I know it's not technically Irish and what people think of as shepherd's pie can vary from place to place, but I envision shepherd's pie as a casserole consisting of ground beef, carrots, peas, and onions topped with creamy mashed potatoes and baked until nice and toasty. Perfect filling food on that can often be made with things you probably already have! I personally already had some frozen peas, carrots and onions (that I use for salads), potatoes (which I always keep on hand for mashed potatoes and french fries) as well as some ground beef. I didn't even have to go to the grocery store for this meal. So without further ado, here is my recipe for shepherd's pie.

Shepherd's Pie

Ingredients:

Mashed Potato Topping

• 5-6 large potatoes, peeled and cut into thirds
• 1/4 cup of milk
• 2-3 tbsp butter
• Salt + Pepper
• Chives, chopped

"Pie Filling"

• 1 tsp olive oil
• 1 medium sized onion, diced
• 2 large carrots, diced
• 2 cloves of garlic, minced
• 1 1/2 lbs of lean ground beef
• 1-2 tsp Worcestershire sauce
• 1 cup frozen peas, thawed
• 2 tsp dried thyme
• Salt + Pepper
• 2 tbsp butter
• 2 tbsp flour
• 1 1/4 cup beef broth

Shepherd's Pie

Step 1: Acquire Potatoes

Step 2: Peel Potatoes

Step 3: Chop potatoes into smaller pieces that are roughly the same size so that they cook evenly.

 

Step 4: Cover potatoes with water and bring to a boil. Boil for 5-8 minutes or until potatoes are fork tender and mashable. 

Step 5: Drain!

Step 6: Add milk and butter and mash with a fork or potato masher. Can add additional milk or butter to suit preferences. I prefer creamy potatoes but still a little chunky.

Step 7: Saute carrots and onions in olive oil until onions start to turn translucent.

Step 8: Set veg aside and brown ground beef.

Step 9: Once ground beef is cooked through reincorporate vegetables and add Worcestershire sauce, garlic, thyme, and salt and pepper to taste. I also added some soy sauce for some additional depth of flavor.

Step 10: Add peas to meat mixture and stir to combine.

Step 11: Set meat filling aside in casserole dish. Don't forget to preheat that oven to 400 degrees!

Step 12: Melt 2 tablespoons of butter in pan.

Step 13: Add 2 tablespoons of flour and stir to incorporate making a roux. Work quickly so that the flour does not burn. This mixture may not look appetizing but it is essentially a thickening agent that will help create a nice sauce.

Step 14: Stir in beef broth and allow to thicken slightly almost to a gravy consistency.

Step 15: Pour sauce over meat mixture and mix well.

Step 16: Top meat mixture with mashed potatoes. Note that I also mixed some diced chives into my mashed potatoes for some additional flavor!

Step 17: Bake for 30 minutes at 400 degrees or until top is lightly browned.

Step 18: Serve and enjoy! This is a nice hearty meal made with simple ingredients in a unique way. Great to share and easy on the budget! I hope you enjoy.

All the directions in one place:

1. Acquire Potatoes

2. Peel Potatoes

3. Chop potatoes into smaller pieces that are roughly the same size so that they cook evenly.

4. Cover potatoes with water and bring to a boil. Boil for 5-8 minutes or until potatoes are fork tender and mashable. 

5. Drain!

6. Add milk and butter and mash with a fork or potato masher. Can add additional milk or butter to suit preferences. I prefer creamy potatoes but still a little chunky.

7. Saute carrots and onions in olive oil until onions start to turn translucent.

8. Set veg aside and brown ground beef.

9. Once ground beef is cooked through reincorporate vegetables and add Worcestershire sauce, garlic, thyme, and salt and pepper to taste. I also added some soy sauce for some additional depth of flavor.

10. Add peas to meat mixture and stir to combine.

11. Set meat filling aside in casserole dish. Don't forget to preheat that oven to 400 degrees!

12. Melt 2 tablespoons of butter in pan.

13. Add 2 tablespoons of flour and stir to incorporate making a roux. Work quickly so that the flour does not burn. This mixture may not look appetizing but it is essentially a thickening agent that will help create a nice sauce.

14. Stir in beef broth and allow to thicken slightly almost to a gravy consistency.

15. Pour sauce over meat mixture and mix well.

16. Top meat mixture with mashed potatoes. Note that I also mixed some diced chives into my mashed potatoes for some additional flavor!

17. Bake for 30 minutes at 400 degrees or until top is lightly browned.

18. Serve and enjoy! This is a nice hearty meal made with simple ingredients in a unique way. Great to share and easy on the budget! I hope you enjoy.