{"id":2343,"date":"2016-03-14T07:00:34","date_gmt":"2016-03-14T07:00:34","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/betondinner.com\/?p=2343"},"modified":"2018-03-09T02:27:23","modified_gmt":"2018-03-09T02:27:23","slug":"shepherds-pie","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/betondinner.com\/shepherds-pie\/","title":{"rendered":"Shepherd’s Pie."},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Shepherd's<\/a><\/p>\n

This week, to help you celebrate two important holidays (that would be today, 3.14, aka Pi Day, and St. Patrick’s day), I bring you shepherd’s pie! This version has a saucy ground beef mixture full of carrots, peas, and corn and is topped with a layer of fluffy, buttery mashed potatoes.<\/p>\n

\"Shepherd's<\/a><\/p>\n

The key to timing in this recipe is to start cooking your potatoes first. You need about 2\u00a0lbs of potatoes, peeled and chunked and covered with cold water in a pot. Bring the water to a gentle boil and cook the potatoes, covered, until tender, about 20 minutes.<\/p>\n

\"Shepherd's<\/a><\/p>\n

Once the potatoes are on, chop up a medium onion and a few carrots. It feels a little backwards, but the onion and carrots sweat for a bit in the pan first, and then the ground beef gets added. I like to use a fairly lean ground beef since you don’t drain off the fat – once the meat is browned, you add a few tablespoons of flour right to the beef mixture and it helps to create the saucy gravy.<\/p>\n

Tomato paste, chicken broth, Worcestershire sauce, and some herbs make the meat mixture super flavorful. I like to add frozen peas and corn after the simmering step so they stay a little crisper when the shepherd’s pie gets baked, but feel free to add them before if you’d like them to cook longer!<\/p>\n

\"making<\/a><\/p>\n

I’m usually able to mash the\u00a0potatoes while the meat mixture simmers, so the shepherd’s pie is ready to assemble when it’s done. When the potatoes are tender, drain the water and mix in butter, milk, salt and pepper and mash away! I usually use a hand mixer for this, but I guess I decided not to move it??\u00a0– or else I put it in a super secret spot I haven’t discovered in nearly 9 months of living here!<\/p>\n

\"Shepherd's<\/a>I was making a double batch, so I used my dutch oven to make the meat mixture. Normally, I use a large, deep ovenproof skillet and plop the potatoes directly on top to save on dishes!<\/em><\/p>\n

Assemble your shepherd’s pie and bake for about 25 minutes – then dig in. I served ours with bread and applesauce<\/span><\/a>, but steamed green beans, a salad, cornbread, or fresh fruit would all be good sides!<\/p>\n

\"Shepherd's<\/a><\/p>\nPrint<\/a>

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