My Grans Shepherds Pie Recipes

SHEPHERD'S PIE

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 375°F and set an oven rack in the middle position.
• Place the beef, baking soda, 1 teaspoon of the salt, and 1 tablespoon of water in a medium bowl. Mash with your hand to combine. Set aside for 20 minutes.
• While the meat tenderizes, place the potatoes in medium saucepan and add just enough cold water to cover them. Bring to a boil over high heat, then reduce the heat to medium-low and simmer, uncovered, until the potatoes are soft and fork-tender, 8 to 10 minutes. Drain the potatoes and return to the saucepan. Place the pan over medium heat and stir the potatoes with a wooden spoon or potato masher until they are dry and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Remove the pan from the heat and add the sour cream, butter, half & half, and the remaining teaspoon of salt. Using a potato masher, stir and mash the potatoes with the other ingredients until smooth. Taste and adjust seasoning, if necessary. Set the mashed potatoes aside.
• Heat a 12-in oven-proof skillet over medium heat. Add the bacon and cook, stirring frequently, until crisp, 6 to 8 minutes. Using a slotted spoon, transfer the bacon to a paper towel-lined plate, leaving the fat in the pan. Add the onions and carrots to the bacon fat and cook, stirring frequently, until softened and starting to brown, 6 to 8 minutes. Add the garlic and cook 1 minute more. Add the wine and increase the heat to high; bring to a boil, scraping any brown bits from the bottom of the pan, until the liquid is reduced by about half. Add the flour and stir until dissolved. Add the reserved ground beef mixture, tomato paste, and Worcestershire sauce; continue cooking on high heat, breaking the meat apart with a spoon, until the meat is no longer pink, about 5 minutes. Add the chicken broth; bring to a simmer, reduce the heat to low, and cook, scraping any brown bits from the bottom of the pan, until thickened, about 2 minutes. Stir in the thyme, pepper, peas, and reserved bacon, and cook until the peas are warmed through. Taste and adjust seasoning, if necessary.
• Dollop the mashed potatoes evenly over the filling. Use a rubber or offset spatula to spread the potatoes evenly over the stew and all the way to the edges of the skillet. Drag a fork across the top to make ridges. Place the skillet on a baking sheet or large sheet of foil to catch any drips and bake until the filling is hot, the topping is lightly browned, and the edges are bubbly, about 30 minutes. (For more color, turn on the broiler and broil for the last 5 minutes, or until the top is golden.) Sprinkle with chives and serve.
• Note: If you don't have an oven-safe skillet, you can transfer the meat mixture to a 2.5-qt casserole dish and then spread the mashed potatoes overtop.
• Make-Ahead Instructions: The stew portion of the recipe can be made several days ahead of time and refrigerated. Before assembling the pie, reheat the stew, adding a little broth if necessary if it seems dry. The mashed potatoes should be made right before assembling and baking the pie.

MY MOTHER'S SHEPHERD'S PIE

Steps:

• For the potatoes: Peel and cube the potatoes into a 1-inch dice. Put in a large pot and add enough cold water to cover the potatoes by 1 inch. Season the water with salt and bring to a boil. Boil the potatoes until tender, about 10 minutes. Drain the potatoes and pass through a ricer. Add the milk, sour cream, melted butter and egg yolks to the potatoes and stir with a wooden spoon until smooth. Season with salt and pepper and reserve.
• For the filling: Preheat the oven to 375˚ F. In a medium sauté pan over medium heat, melt the butter with the olive oil. Add the pearl onions and cook, shaking the pan occasionally so the onions brown on all sides, until caramelized, about 5 minutes. Set aside.
• In a large shallow ovenproof braising pan, heat the canola oil over medium-high heat. Add the diced onions and rosemary and cook, stirring often, until the onions are slightly browned and soft, 3 to 5 minutes. Add the lamb and season with salt and pepper. Cook, stirring, until the lamb is cooked through, 4 to 6 minutes. Add the tomato paste, flour and sherry vinegar and cook for 2 more minutes. Add the chicken stock, peas and carrots and pearl onions and bring to a boil. Spoon off any excess fat. Season with salt and pepper and stir in the parsley.
• Top the lamb mixture with an even layer of the potatoes. For the topping: Drizzle the potatoes with the melted butter and sprinkle with the Parmesan. Transfer to the oven and bake until the potatoes are lightly browned, about 40 minutes. Garnish with additional parsley.

MY MOTHER'S SHEPHERD'S PIE

Steps:

• For the potato topping: Peel and cube the potatoes into 1-inch dice. Put in a large pot and add enough cold water to cover the potatoes by 1 inch. Season the water with salt and bring to a boil. Boil the potatoes until tender, about 10 minutes. Drain the potatoes and pass through a ricer. Add the milk, sour cream, melted butter and egg yolks to the potatoes and stir with a wooden spoon until smooth. Season with salt and pepper and reserve.
• For the filling: Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.
• In a medium saute pan over medium heat, melt the butter with the olive oil. Add the pearl onions and cook, shaking the pan occasionally so the onions brown on all sides, until caramelized, about 5 minutes. Set aside.
• In a large ovensafe shallow braising pan, heat the canola oil over medium-high heat. Add the onions and rosemary and cook, stirring often, until the onions are slightly browned and soft, 3 to 5 minutes. Add the lamb and season with salt and pepper. Continue to cook until the lamb cooked through, 4 to 6 minutes. Add the tomato paste, flour and sherry vinegar and cook for 2 more minutes. Add the chicken stock, peas and carrots and pearl onions and bring to a boil. Season with salt and pepper and stir in the parsley.
• For the additional topping: Top the lamb mixture with an even layer of the potato topping. Drizzle with the melted butter and sprinkle with the Parmesan. Transfer to the oven and bake until the topping is lightly browned, about 40 minutes. Garnish with additional parsley.

MY GRAN'S SHEPHERD'S PIE

Steps:

• Dry fry the lamb with onion and bay leaf, mushrooms sand carrots for 8-10 minutes.
• Add the flour and cook, stirring, for 1 minute.
• Gradually blend in the stock and tomato puree. Cook, stirring until the mixture thickens and boils.
• Cover and simmer for 25 minutes. Remove the bay leaf and season to taste.
• Spoon into a 3 pint ovenproof serving dish.
• Cook potatoes in boiling salted water for 20 minutes. Drain well. Mash with the butter and milk.
• Pile potatoes on the mince mixture and sprinkle over the cheese.
• Bake at 400 degrees for 15-20 minutes.