Shepherd's Pie

I've been trying to cut back on the taters but they are evil.  They call to me in the night begging me to eat them up.  French fries, tater tots, baked potatoes (boil 'em, mash 'em, stick 'em in a stew) and of course mashed potatoes full of cream and butter.  Yum!  

I do occasionally make too much of a good thing.  But no worries! I have the perfect recipe to solve any excess mashed potato problem you may have.  Shepherd's Pie!  So yummy and very easy to make.

 

All you need is some leftover mashed potatoes, ground beef, frozen veggie mix, a jar of gravy, a little onion and garlic and a little bit of ketchup and worchestershire sauce.  The ketchup is my secret ingredient and without it makes this recipe boring and bland.  You may also want to add some shredded cheese.  I didn't this time because I forgot (and was trying to cut out some extra calories!).

The first step is cooking the ground beef with some onion and garlic.

When that's all done, drain off any fat if necessary.  I use some pretty lean beef so I didn't have to drain any fat off.

Add some frozen mixed veggies.  I love keeping frozen veggies on hand.  They are so convenient.  I like to use them in soups and potpies.  I wish I could get a mix without the green beans though.  Frozen green beans taste yuck!

Allow the veggies to thaw and then add in the gravy, Worcestershire sauce and the ketchup.  The ketchup just really brings out the meat flavor.  Don't use too much though!  You could probably substitute some tomato paste but I find it hard to believe that their isn't any ketchup in the fridge unless you just ran out.  I guess some people don't like the stuff but I'd die if I didn't have any for my fries.  Just sayin'!
  

Place meat mixture in a casserole dish.  Top with potatoes.  If your using leftovers I found it easier to warm them up a bit and thin them out with a little more milk before spreading them on top.  I sometimes add an egg slightly beaten to make them a bit richer and crust up in the oven.  See those fork marks I made?  So necessary to get some awesome brownage!  If you want to add the cheese this is probably an unnecessary step as the cheese should definitely melt up and be bubbly for you.

Pop 'er in the hot oven and 30-40 minutes later emerges casserole of awesome-ness!  I may or may not have nibbled before taking the above picture.

Sadly, I rarely have leftovers because this dish tastes even better the next day.

Shepherd's Pie

Ingredients: 

3-4 Large Russet potatoes

4 TBS Butter

1/4 cup milk

1 lb lean ground beef

1/4 cup onion, chopped

1-2 cloves garlic, minced

1-2 cups frozen vegetable mix

1 jar prepared beef gravy

1 TBS Worcestershire Sauce

2 TBS Ketchup

salt & pepper to taste

Directions:

1.Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add potatoes and cook until tender but still firm, about 15 minutes. Drain and mash. Mix in butter and milk.  Season with salt and pepper to taste; set aside.

2.  In large frying pan, add ground beef and cook until well browned. Add onion and cook until clear, then add in garlic. Pour off excess fat. Add frozen veggies and heat through.  Stir in gravy, Worcestershire sauce, and ketchup.  Salt & pepper to taste.

3. Spread the ground beef in an even layer on the bottom of a 2 quart casserole dish.  Top with the mashed potato mixture and sprinkle with shredded cheese if desired. If not adding cheese, scrape top of potatoes with a the back of a fork creating grooves.

4. Bake in the preheated 350 F oven for 30 minutes, or until golden brown and bubbly.