Shepard's Pie

Shepardspie-sm.jpg

Two years ago for my birthday, Shawn gifted me with an Irish country cookbook. Not having potatoes in our diet, I thought the cook book would be an incredible challenge. There are so many tempting dishes! I borrowed this one and made changes to it to fit our lives.

I discovered that potatoes are actually a relatively new addition to the Irish diet, arriving from South America and very recently a staple. They replaced the traditional oats, which had been staple for centuries. Traditionally the Irish fermented their oats the way all traditional people did their grains. Since potatoes convert to blood sugar rapidly and cause a glycemic spike, we do not eat them.

I have been playing with the recipes with other veggies instead. The mash cauliflower parsnip and turnip is absolutely delicious! Here is the recipe, but I recommend that you make the mash first before getting into preparing the meat. When I know I’ll have a busy week, I will prepare the meat and mash the day before, making enough to freeze one. Then all I have to do is layer it and put it in the oven the next day.

Double the recipe if you have a big family so that you can have leftovers or a whole pie for another meal. Its delicious as leftovers and freezes well.

Ingredients:

  • 2 tbs fat + plus some for brushing on to the surface (bacon grease is my choice in this dish)

  • 1 +1/2 lbs of ground lamb

  • 1/2 lbs of liver (lamb or beef) ( I blend it myself in my small food processor)

  • 1 medium onion minced

  • 1 large or 2 small carrots minced

  • 1tsp Dijon mustard

  • 1/2 cup of broth (beef, lamb or chicken depending on what’s on the stove)

  • salt and pepper

  • 4 cups of mashed turnips & cauliflower*

Directions

  1. Pre-heat the oven to 350

  2. Heat the fat in a heavy pan. Add carrots and onions and cook until soft but not browned.

  3. Add the lamb, liver and broth. Stir as it cooks break the meat up. Cook until browned. Add the mustard. Simmer for 10 minutes on high heat.

  4. Transfer the meat mixture to a baking dish or casserole. Cover the meat with veggie mash and smooth over the surface. Make a pattern on it if you like!! Brush on melted butter or fat.

  5. Bake in the oven for 50 mins. Let cool for a moment before serving as it is VERY hot. Enjoy!!

Main DishesShawn and Mingalamb, liver, beef, MeatComment