Shepherd's Pie

This was one of the first recipes I made when then husband and I were just married. I was trying to embrace his love of casseroles (I don't like them much) and come up with one dish dinners that were easy and tasty. That's all a newly married woman wants really...and easy and delicious dinner that her husband will ask for again and again. Well, this is mine! Next to a good steak, this is usually the husband's dinner request. It's on our menu at least once a month and is also a great meal to have stored in the freezer. Now for all you purists out there, I know Shepherd's Pie is traditionally made with ground lamb, but we don't do lamb in the Brown household so technically this would be called Cottage Pie. Call it what you like and hopefully you'll enjoy it as much as we do!

What you need

- 4 large baking potatoes or 5-6 small ones
- 1 medium onion, chopped
- 1 tsp sugar
- 1.5 pounds lean ground beef
- 1 C carrots
- 1 C peas
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 T white rice flour
- 1/2 C broth (I used chicken)
- 1 tsp dried rosemary
- salt and pepper
- 1/2 C shredded cheddar cheese
- 1/2 tsp dried parsley



Directions

- Start by making the mashed potatoes. I used small yukon gold potatoes, peeled and cubed and then boiled in salt water until fork tender

- Add whatever you like in your potatoes and mash until desired consistency. I used a bit of milk, sour cream, garlic powder, salt and pepper. Set aside.

- In a large skillet or Dutch Oven, heat 1 tsp oil of your choice (I used coconut) over medium heat

- Add in the onions and the sugar and stir well. This will help the onions to caramelize

- When the onions have caramelized (about 7 minutes) add in the ground beef and brown

- Add in the garlic, carrots and peas and cook for 5 minutes or until the vegetables are tender

- Add in 1 T of white rice flour and the rosemary. Stir well

- Add in the chicken broth (or you could use beef or vegetable...whatever you have!) and scrape up the browned bits from the bottom of the pan. That's lots of good flavor! Taste the mixture and add salt and pepper to your liking.

*NOTE: When I'm making this for the husband I sometimes will substitute a dark beer for the broth. He LOVES the flavor it adds but I don't care for it (I HATE BEER!!) So that's definitely an option too!

- When the mixture becomes thick and bubbly, transfer to a greased baking dish

- Top with the mashed potatoes you made earlier

- Bake at 350 for 25 minutes. Take out of the oven and top with cheese and dried parsley

- Return to oven for another 5-10 minutes until the cheese melt and starts to bubble

- Serve up a big plate for the husband and enjoy!

Freezer Meal Instructions
- Follow recipe up until baking. Instead, layer in a freezer safe dish (I like using the foil pans) and cover  tightly with foil. When ready to serve, thaw out completely and then bake for 25 minutes, add the cheese and parsley and bake for another 10 minutes. Easy!