Shepherds Pie

What is better than a warm comforting Shepherds Pie on a cold windy day?  This recipe started out as a Weight Watchers recipe that I have modified to have a little more taste but is still pretty healthy and easily serves 4 and could stretch to 6.  Many thanks to my friend who helped me make last nights dinner a success!

     Shepherds Pie:

     1lb Lean Ground Beef

     1 Onion Chopped
     2-3 Carrots Sliced Thin
     2-3 Celery Stalks Chopped

     3/4C Frozen Peas

     3/4C Frozen Corn

     1tsp Minced Garlic

     1TB Olive Oil

     1tsp Worcestershire Sauce

     1TB Crushed Rosemary

     1.5tsp Crushed Tarragon

     1 Can Beef Stock

     1/3C Water

     2TB Corn Starch

     3-4 Large Red Potatoes

     1/2C Sour Cream

     1TB Butter

     Salt & Pepper

Wash and cut the potatoes into 1/2" cubes and rinse under cold water to remove excess starch – I prefer to leave the skins on my potatoes but feel free to peel them if you are not a fan of skins in your mashed potatoes.  Place the cut potatoes in a pot of cold salted water and bring to a boil.  Cook potatoes until a fork can easily pass through the cubes.  Drain potatoes, return to the pot, and add: salt, pepper, sour cream and butter to the pot and mash to your desired consistency. 

While the potatoes are cooking brown the beef (you can also use a pound of ground turkey) in a large sauce pot, drain the meat and keep to the side.  In the sauce pot add olive oil and garlic to the pan over medium heat.  Let the garlic cook for about 30 seconds until it becomes fragrant than add carrots and let them cook for a few minutes, then add onion and celery, salt and pepper.  Let these vegetables cook for 2-3 minutes then toss in peas and corn, rosemary and tarragon, stir and then add the beef stock to the pot, stirring and bringing up to a low simmer.  While the pot is coming up to a simmer, mix water and cornstarch together, once the pot is simmering add the corn starch mix to the pot and allow to thicken, add the beef back to the pot and the Worcestershire Sauce and stir until the liquid has become a thick gravy coating.

 

Pour the meat and vegetable mix into a 13x9 pan and evenly spread mashed potatoes on top of the mixture.  Bake at 400 degrees for 30-35 minutes until the potatoes start to brown on top.  You may want to put a sheet of tin foil under the pan as the gravy will bubble up through the potatoes and sometimes will bubble out of the pan.

Let it sit for a few minutes before serving.  This is most definitely a recipe that gets even better on the second day and reheats very well.