Shepherd's Pie

I have a confession. This is the first time I've ever made a shepherd's pie.  Another confession: it is also the first time I have ever had a shepherd's pie. So, moral of this story is that if you are a shepherd's pie purist, I can't promise that this is absolutely authentic. However, I will promise that this is delicious and hearty and yum.

 

So you're probably thinking, "If she's never had shepherd's pie, how and why did she want to make it?" Good question, no clue. I had seen lots of recipes that sounded fantastic and I guess I was imagining the flavors (yeah, I'm foody enough to do that...). Maybe I was just inspired by St. Patrick's Day, who knows. But is made a perfect St. Patty's day lunch for Mr. Cowboy and I, it was then sent to Tulsa for the whole Cowboy family to enjoy.

Regardless of its origins, this shepherd's pie turned out great. You should go make this version and then come back to me if I've violated some shepherd's pie commandments.

Notes:

• If you have very flavorful mashed potatoes (already very garlic heavy), feel free to skip the dusting of garlic powder on top of the mashed potatoes.  This just adds a nice extra flavor to regular mashed potatoes.
• If you don't have any leftover mashed potatoes, feel free to whip up a small batch really quick.  You probably need at least 2 c. of mashed potatoes, a little more or less won't hurt the recipe as long as you have enough for a nice layer.
• For the vegetable medley, frozen is ideal but other forms will work as well.  I used a combination of frozen medleys for my shepherd's pie.  The frozen medley had asparagus, carrots, and corn, so I added a nice heap of green peas to the mix to hold true to the shepherd's pie traditions I had seen.

Shepherd's Pie:

• 1 lb. ground beef
• 1/2 medium onion, chopped
• 2 t. garlic, minced
• Salt & Pepper
• 3 T flour
• 2 T tomato paste
• 1 T Worcestershire sauce
• 1 T soy sauce
•  1 3/4 c. chicken broth
• 2-3 c. vegetable medley
• Leftover Mashed Potatoes
• Garlic Salt
• Butter

Preheat to 400.

Brown the hamburger meat with the onion. When the burger is mostly browned, add in the garlic and season liberally with salt and pepper. If there is excess fat, drain the meat and return to the pan.

Sprinkle the flour over the meat, mix well, and cook for 1 minute to eliminate the raw flour flavor.  Add the tomato paste, Worcestershire sauce, soy sauce, and chicken broth. Bring the mixture to a boil, lower the heat and simmer until the sauce thickens, about 5 minutes. Add the frozen vegetables to the meat mixture and stir.

Pour the mixture into a deep casserole dish. Cover evenly with your leftover mashed potatoes. On the top of the mashed potatoes, sprinkle a light covering of garlic salt and pepper on .top of the mashed potatoes. Add a couple of butter slices intermittently across the top of the potatoes to help the browning process.

Bake for 20-30 minutes, until the top is nice and golden brown.