Mommys of America easy winter suppers, #3: Shepherd's Pie

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Friday, January 4. 2013

Mommys of America easy winter suppers, #3: Shepherd's Pie

The Brits and Aussies call it "Cottage Pie."

Why "Shepherd's"? Because it is traditionally made with ground lamb or mutton. That's how Alton Brown makes it.

Americans use ground beef, usually. Ground mutton is not a typical supermarket item. Go ahead and use instant mashed potato if you must - the recipe don't care.

I am hoping some Mom will try each of the recipes in this series, and report back on family response.

Posted by Bird Dog in Food and Drink, Our Essays at 15:21 | Comments (6) | Trackbacks (0)

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I thought the shepherd was supposed to give his life for the sheep, not the other way around.

And i draw the line at instant mashed potatoes. No, no no.

#1 D on 2013-01-04 18:09 (Reply)

I totally cheat on this - not the same, but still tasty and easy!

One large can of beef stew, one small can each of corn and peas, one large onion, and instant mashed potatoes.

Saute the onion in (what else!) butter. When done, add the onion and the drained peas and drained corn to the beef stew. Mix all together well.

Put it all in a large casserole dish, topped with the cooked instant mashed potatoes, into a 350 oven for 30 minutes or so, until the top is slightly browned and the mixture is bubbling.

Top with shredded cheese, back into the oven for 5 minutes.

. . .and there you have my version of "Shepard's Pie." Not the real thing. Some day I'll make the real thing. Na, I won't, this cheating way is too easy and tasty.

#2 Charles on 2013-01-05 00:34 (Reply)

What possible point is there to instant potatoes? Potatoes are cheap, universally available, and easy to keep fresh. Dried substitutes should be for foodstuffs that are hard to get fresh (basil out of season) or for backpackers who need to dehydrate things in order to reduce the load they have to carry.

#3 Texan99 (Link) on 2013-01-05 12:21 (Reply)

I made this with ground lamb, crushed stewed tomatoes, caramelized onions and diced, caramelized eggplant. Added a scosh of cinnamon and allspice and real mashed potatoes. It was loved by everyone but the kid. Who cares what kids think, anyway.

#4 Jewel (Link) on 2013-01-05 15:26 (Reply)

Jewel, that sounds very good. I never would have thought of adding eggplant.

I've made mashed potatoes that were cooked with a few sprigs of thyme added to the water, the potaotes have just a hint of their flavor. Usually the thyme flavor is gone if there are any leftover the next day. However, the cinnamon and allspice added to the potatoes sounds especially interesting. I will give that a try. Thanks!

#4.1 Charles on 2013-01-06 16:55 (Reply)

Here in Britain we have both Shepherd's and Cottage pie.

Cottage pie is made from minced beef with the mash potato covered with cheese and melted under the grill-this represents the thatch roof!

#5 Patricia on 2013-01-06 23:55 (Reply)

Shepherd's pie is traditionally made with lamb, but nowadays ground beef is more normal, even in the UK.

Cottage pie is traditionally made with ground beef.

The difference between the two is that shepherd's pie is topped with mashed potatoes, but cottage pie with layered potato slices

#6 Bill Haney on 2013-01-07 13:21 (Reply)

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Friday, January 4. 2013

Mommys of America easy winter suppers, #3: Shepherd's Pie