Best Shepherd's Pie EVER

I've often wondered if anyone ever actually reads the long stories before recipes on blog posts.  I think I have read maybe one.  Ever.

That being said, I don't need a reason to make shepherd's pie.  I just wanted it (and for once in my life had some ground beef thawed out).

Enough chit chat! Get to the recipe!

What you'll need:

Meat mixture

• 1 lb lean ground beef (I used 96%, but it's up to you)
• 1 cup finely diced mushrooms
• 2 cups mixed frozen veggies (peas, carrots, corn, green beans)
• 1 cup chicken broth
• 1/4 cup flour
• 1/2 onion, finely chopped (I actually completely forgot about the onion!! But it still turned out awesome)
• 2 T tomato paste
• 1 T minced garlic
• 2 T Worcestershire sauce
• 2 T parsley
• 1 tsp basil
• 1 tsp thyme
• 1/2 tsp rosemary
• 1-2 T avocado oil (or olive; whatever)
• salt and pepper to taste

Mashed potatoes

• 4-5 large red potatoes (peeled if you like, but I didn't)
• 1 1/2 sticks of butter
• 1/2 cup half and half (or milk)
• salt to taste
• paprika

What to do:

Dice potatoes into one inch cubes, and boil in salted water until tender (about 15 minutes).  Drain.  Mash in the pot with butter and half and half until desired consistency.  You can use a food processor for this step, but I personally don't like my potatoes super creamy.  Also, I don't own a food processor.  Ahem.  Taste and see if they need more butter, milk, or salt.  Don't worry about calories.  You're beautiful.

At the same time you start the potatoes, heat your oil on medium heat in the bottom of a large skillet. Saute onions about 4 minutes, then add ground beef.  Cook your ground beef, seasoned with salt and pepper, chopping it up into bitty bits with a wooden spoon until browned all the way through.  Drain.  Set aside.

Drop mushrooms into the skillet and cook until brown and fragrant, about 4 minutes.  Return meat to pan and add garlic.  Cook an additional 30 seconds, until fragrant.  Add flour and combine well into mixture.  Preheat oven to 400°F.

Add broth, veggies, tomato paste, Worcestershire sauce, parsley, basil, thyme, and rosemary.  Mix them all together and let simmer, covered, for about 10 minutes.

Spray casserole dish with cooking spray.  Spread meat mixture on the bottom.  Spoon mashed potatoes on to the top of the meat and completely cover.  I ended up with some extra potatoes, but those can be reheated on leftover night.  Sprinkle the top with paprika and pop in the oven, uncovered.  

Bake for about 10 minutes, then broil until the top of the potatoes are a nice golden color.  Let cool for about 5 minutes before serving.

Enjoy.

Honesty factor:  The only things I actually measured were the frozen vegetables and the broth.  Everything else I pretty much eyeballed and guesstimated, which is what I love about cooking.  It's art, not science.

Prep time: about 10 minutes

Cook time: about an hour

Servings: about 6