Simple, yet most comforting, vegetable loaded Shepherd’s Pie
Sometimes simple, plain old-fashioned food is all we need on a chilly evening. Shepherd’s Pie, also known as, Cottage Pie, is comfort food at it’s best.
Strange thing is, we are a bilingual family, English and Afrikaans and when I speak English I would refer to a “Cottage Pie”, but when I speak Afrikaans it is a “Herders Pastei”, which literally means “Shepherd’s Pie”!
But since I see Shepherd’s Pie is the more popular (preferred?) name for this recipe, we will stick to a Shepherd’s Pie.
I have been making this simple Shepherd’s Pie for decades now, changing up the vegetables as to what I have on hand. Leftover raw or frozen vegetables from a previous dish come in very handy, as you only need a little of each.
Serve with a salad or two (or one or two vegetable sides) and dinner is ready.
I like a thick layer of mashed potatoes, therefore no dinner rolls, but if the potato layer is, for some reason, thinnish you might want to “starch” it up by adding a roll or two.
My family would never say no to Shepherd’s Pie – we all love it and it is such a versatile recipe, mine is rarely exactly the same. Use vegetables you have in the refrigerator or even canned for when you are in a hurry.
This is one of my many versions, (most preferred by us though) and I think the most popular as I usually have everything on hand. Frozen Corn and Peas – always in the freezer!
Hearty, vegetable loaded filling :
Remember, you can always add more vegetables if you prefer, or change with whatever you have on hand.
Easy Shepherd’s Pie
- 2 TB Butter
- 1 Onion chopped
- 1 t Fresh Garlic crushed
- 750 g Lean Ground Beef ( 1 1/2 pounds )
- 3 Carrots peeled and grated
- 1/2 cup Frozen Corn defrosted
- 1/2 cup Frozen Peas defrosted
- 2 TB Tomato Paste
- 2 TB Parsley finely chopped
- 2/3 cup Beef Stock
- Salt and Black Pepper to taste
- 3-4 cups Mashed Potatoes seasoned
- 1/2 cup Cheddar Cheese grated
- 1/4 t Paprika
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Melt the Butter in a large pan – saute the Onion and Garlic until soft – add the Ground Beef and cook until done – add the Carrots, Corn and Peas
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Mix together the Tomato Paste, Parsley and Beef Stock – add to the pan – cover and simmer for 30 minutes – season to taste with Salt and Black Pepper
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Pre-heat the oven to 200 deg C (400 deg F) about 10 minutes before the filling is done – spray a 20 x 20 cm (8 x 8 inch) oven dish with cooking spray
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Transfer the filling to the prepared oven dish – top with the Mashed Potatoes – sprinkle over the Cheddar Cheese and lastly some Paprika – bake 10 – 15 minutes until golden brown and the Cheese has melted
Remove from the oven – let stand for 5 minutes – slice and serve
