Wavey loves her mashed potatoes, something that my Mom is very aware of and so whenever Grandma gets to make the girl’s dinner, it often involves a dish with mashed potatoes, something like Shepherd’s Pie. After her first couple of bites tonight this is what Waverly had to say, ‘Oohhh, this is good – did Grandma bring it over?’. Thanks kid.
Shepherd’s Pie is a lot like any ‘pot-pie’ – it can be altered and arranged according to what you have on hand. Cook the meat, add a bit of extra broth and seasonings, throw it in a casserole, cover it with vegetables and mashed potatoes and bake, with or without cheese. Once again, I’m typing this out for me. It also needs to be noted that my sister tried a version with ground turkey and it was great – I think I’d use sweet potatoes on beef and regular potatoes on turkey or chicken, but I’m sure any combination would be just as tasty.
Also, the ready made casseroles freeze perfectly and the last time I made this, I didn’t measure anything and ended up with extra beef, so I froze it and now all I need to do is cook potatoes for a fast meal and I don’t have another casserole dish in the freezer.
Shepherd’s Pie
1 1/2 lbs. extra lean beef
1 large onion, finely chopped
4 to 6 cloves of garlic, finely chopped
salt and freshly ground pepper
1/4 c. flour
1 c. water
1 T. Better Than Beef Bouillon
2 to 3 c. of vegetables – I generally use peas, corn, par-cooked carrots and Lima beans
Enough yams or potatoes (1 to 2 lbs. depending on your casserole dish), cooked and mashed with milk or sour cream and some salt and pepper.
grated cheese for topping – I tend to use Parmesan on yams and old cheddar on regular potatoes
Heat a bit of oil in a large skillet and saute together the beef, onion and garlic with a good grinding of pepper. I generally hold off on adding salt until after the bouillon has been mixed in. Cook until the meat is no longer pink and the onions are softened. Stir in the flour until there is no trace of it anywhere and then add water and bouillon, mixing well and bring it to a boil. Simmer for about 10 minutes or so, adding more water if necessary and check the seasonings.
If your potatoes aren’t cooked already, have them going while you’re preparing the meat.
Preheat the oven to 350 and spray your casserole of choice. When the meat is ready evenly line the bottom of the dish, sprinkle on your vegetables and cover with the mashed potatoes. If you’re cooking this straight away, it will probably only take a half hour or so because everything is already warm, and if you’re using grated cheese on top, add it in the last 10 minutes or so.
If you’ve taken this out of the freezer, make sure it’s thawed completely and then cook, covered, for 45 minutes to an hour, taking the cover off to add cheese if you want for the last 10 minutes.
Very tasty, very convenient and an extremely flexible recipe. Yum.