Happy St. Patrick's Day!
Shepherd's Pie
In early cook books, Cottage Pie was a dish using leftover roasted meat of any kind. The pie was lined and topped with a mashed potato crust. The term "shepherd's pie" did not appear until 1877. Since then, it has become synonymous with "cottage pie", regardless of the main ingredient. The term "shepherd's pie" has been used with recipes containing lamb, since shepherds are concerned with sheep and not cattle. (source: Wikipedia)
INGREDIENTS:
1 tablespoon Manoli Canoli olive oil
1 tablespoon SMC butter
1 onion, diced
2 pounds SMC ground lamb
1/3 cup all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons minced fresh rosemary
1 teaspoon paprika
1/8 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 tablespoon ketchup
3 cloves garlic, minced (available in vegetable bag)
2 1/2 cups water, or as needed
1 (12 ounce) package frozen peas and carrots, thawed
2 1/2 pounds Yukon Gold potatoes, peeled and halved
1 tablespoon SMC butter
1 pinch ground cayenne pepper
1/4 cup SMC cream cheese
1/4 pound SMC cheddar cheese, shredded
1 SMC Certified Humane egg yolk
2 tablespoons SMC milk
salt and ground black pepper to taste
DIRECTIONS:
Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.
Place olive oil and butter in Dutch oven over medium heat. Add onion
and ground lamb; brown the meat, breaking it up into small crumbles as it
cooks, about 10 minutes.
Stir in flour until incorporated, and then mix in salt, black pepper,
rosemary, paprika, cinnamon, ketchup, and garlic. Cook and stir until garlic is
fragrant, 2 to 3 minutes.
Stir in water. Reduce heat to medium-low and bring mixture to a simmer;
cook and stir until thick, about 5-6 minutes.
Remove lamb mixture from heat and stir in peas and carrots until combined.
Spread lamb mixture into the bottom of a 9x13-inch baking dish and set
aside.
Place potatoes into a large pan of salted water. Bring to a boil,
reduce heat to medium, and cook until tender, about 15 minutes. Drain well and
return potatoes to pan.
Mash butter, cayenne pepper, cream cheese, and cheese into potatoes.
Mash until combined and potatoes are smooth. Season with salt and black pepper to
taste.
Whisk together egg yolk and milk in a small bowl. Stir into the mashed
potato mixture.
Top the lamb mixture in the baking dish with the mashed potatoes and
spread evenly to cover.
Bake in the preheated oven until the top is golden brown and sauce is
bubbling up around the edges, about 25 to 30 minutes.
Tuesday, March 17, 2015