Loaded Weeknight Sheppards Pie Food

THE BEST SHEPHERD'S PIE

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.
• For the topping: Put the potatoes in a large saucepan and cover with cold water. Season with 2 teaspoons salt. Bring to a boil and cook until tender, about 20 minutes. Drain and reserve the saucepan.
• Meanwhile, make the filling: Heat the olive oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium heat. Add the carrots, onion, celery, garlic, thyme and 2 teaspoons salt. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the vegetables are soft and tender, about 15 minutes.
• Stir in the tomato paste and cook until it turns brick red, about 8 minutes. Add the lamb, 1 1/2 teaspoons salt and a few grinds of black pepper. Cook, breaking up with a wooden spoon, until the meat is no longer pink, about 7 minutes.
• Stir in the peas. Stir in the flour until incorporated, about 1 minute. Add the broth and Worcestershire and cook until thickened, 3 to 5 minutes.
• To finish the topping, melt the butter in the large saucepan over medium heat. Add the cabbage and leeks and cook until tender, about 10 minutes. Add the garlic and cook until fragrant, 1 minute. Add the heavy cream, 1 tablespoon salt, and a few grinds of black pepper, and cook until warm, about 1 minute. Return the potatoes to the pan with the cabbage and add the cheese. Mash with a potato masher or wooden spoon. Remove from the heat and stir in the egg yolks.
• Transfer the filling to a 9-by-13-inch baking dish. Add the topping, swirling to create texture. Make sure that the sides are sufficiently covered so the filling doesn't leak through. Bake until the filling is bubbly and the top is lightly golden, about 35 minutes. Let rest 15 minutes before serving.

EASY SHEPHERD'S PIE

Steps:

• Heat oven to 375ºF.
• Brown meat in large skillet; drain. Return meat to skillet. Add mixed vegetables and gravy; mix well.
• Spoon into 9-inch square baking dish sprayed with cooking spray.
• Mix potatoes, cream cheese, garlic and 1/2 cup cheddar until blended; spoon over meat mixture. Sprinkle with remaining cheddar.
• Bake 20 min. or until heated through.

WEEKNIGHT SHEPHERD'S PIE

Steps:

• In 12-inch skillet over medium heat, in hot oil, cook onion and garlic 5 minutes or until softened, stirring occasionally. Remove to plate.
• In same skillet over medium-high heat, cook ground beef until well browned on all sides, stirring frequently. Add flour; cook 1 minute. Add stewed tomatoes and thyme. Over high heat, heat to boiling; reduce heat to low. Simmer uncovered 10 minutes to blend flavors, stirring occasionally. Stir in peas and carrots.
• Preheat oven to 450 degrees F. Spoon mixture into greased deep-dish pie plate or baking dish. Toss sliced potatoes with butter. Arrange potatoes in center of casserole, overlapping slightly. Bake 10 to 15 minutes or until potatoes are lightly golden.

SHORTCUT SHEPHERD'S PIE

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F. Heat a large skillet over high heat for 2 minutes, then add the oil. (It will shimmer and lightly smoke; that's OK.) When you start to see wisps of smoke, crumble the ground beef evenly into the pan. Let the beef cook undisturbed until browned on one side, 3 minutes, then start breaking it up and turning it to brown any remaining pink spots, about 4 minutes more. Transfer the beef with a slotted spoon to a medium bowl; set aside.
• Turn the heat down to medium and discard all but 2 tablespoons of fat from the skillet. Add the onions, garlic and thyme, stir to combine and cook until the onions are soft and translucent, about 5 minutes. Add the flour and tomato paste and cook, stirring, for 2 minutes. Add the cooked beef, beef stock, Worcestershire sauce, soy sauce, 1 1/4 teaspoons salt and 1/4 teaspoon pepper and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat and simmer until the sauce has thickened, about 4 minutes. Remove the thyme sprigs if using. Fold in the peas and carrots.
• Transfer the mixture to an 8-inch square casserole pan, and top with the potato tots and Cheddar. Bake until the potato tots are crisp and the meat layer is bubbling up the sides, 20 to 25 minutes.

SHEPHERD'S PIE

Steps:

• Peel the potatoes and cut into 1/2-inch dice. Place in a medium saucepan and cover with cold water. Set over high heat, cover and bring to a boil. Once boiling, uncover, decrease the heat to maintain a simmer and cook until tender and easily crushed with tongs, approximately 10 to 15 minutes. Place the half-and-half and butter into a microwave-safe container and heat in the microwave until warmed through, about 35 seconds. Drain the potatoes in a colander and then return to the saucepan. Mash the potatoes and then add the half and half, butter, salt and pepper and continue to mash until smooth. Stir in the yolk until well combined.
• Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.
• While the potatoes are cooking, prepare the filling. Place the canola oil into a 12-inch saute pan and set over medium high heat. Once the oil shimmers, add the onion and carrots and saute just until they begin to take on color, approximately 3 to 4 minutes. Add the garlic and stir to combine. Add the lamb, salt and pepper and cook until browned and cooked through, approximately 3 minutes. Sprinkle the meat with the flour and toss to coat, continuing to cook for another minute. Add the tomato paste, chicken broth, Worcestershire, rosemary, thyme, and stir to combine. Bring to a boil, reduce the heat to low, cover and simmer slowly 10 to 12 minutes or until the sauce is thickened slightly.
• Add the corn and peas to the lamb mixture and spread evenly into an 11 by 7-inch glass baking dish. Top with the mashed potatoes, starting around the edges to create a seal to prevent the mixture from bubbling up and smooth with a rubber spatula. Place on a parchment lined half sheet pan on the middle rack of the oven and bake for 25 minutes or just until the potatoes begin to brown. Remove to a cooling rack for at least 15 minutes before serving.

LIGHTENED-UP SHEPHERD'S PIE

Steps:

• Put the potatoes in a large saucepan and add enough cold water to cover by 2 inches. Bring to a boil, cover and reduce the heat to maintain a steady simmer. Cook until a knife just pierces through the potatoes, about 7 minutes. Add the cauliflower, bring to a boil and simmer until a knife easily slides through the vegetables, about 20 minutes. Reserve 1 cup of the cooking water before draining.
• Return the potatoes and cauliflower to the saucepan. Add the scallions and mash with a potato masher. Add 1/ 4 cup of the broth and continue mashing until almost smooth. If the mixture is dry and falling apart, add a few spoonfuls of the cooking water and continue mashing. The mixture should be thick and hold together. Season with salt and pepper.
• Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 425 degrees F. Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat until hot. Add the beef and spread out in a single layer. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Cook, stirring and breaking into small bits, until browned, about 3 minutes. Transfer to a dish with a slotted spoon.
• Add the oil to the same skillet and reduce the heat to medium. Add the carrots, garlic, celery, onions and some salt and pepper. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the vegetables are browned and tender, about 10 minutes. Add the flour and tomato paste and cook, stirring, for 1 minute. Stir in the Worcestershire sauce and remaining 1 cup broth. Bring to a boil, and then stir in the peas and the beef and its accumulated juices. Remove from the heat.
• In a 3-quart ceramic flameproof baking dish, spread the beef mixture in an even layer. Spoon the potato mixture evenly on top. Bake until the beef mixture is bubbling, about 20 minutes. Turn the oven to broil and broil until the top is golden brown, about 5 minutes more. Let rest 5 minutes before serving.

LOADED WEEKNIGHT SHEPPARD'S PIE

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 375°F. Put olive oil in pan and brown ground beef. Add the soup and tomatoes to the beef.
• Cook mashed potatoes. Stir in sour cream.
• Spread beef mixture into baking dish(es) and spread potatoes on top. Sprinkle bacon bits over potatoes.
• Place in oven and bake for 18- 20 minutes. Enjoy

SHEPHERD'S PIE

Steps:

• In a large pot, bring a gallon of water and 2 tablespoons salt to a boil over high heat. Add potatoes to boiling water and boil for about 15 to 20 minutes, until soft; a knife should go in with almost no resistance.
• In a small saucepan or a microwave oven, heat 6 tablespoons of the butter and milk together until butter melts. Drain potatoes well and return to pot. Using a masher or a ricer, mash hot potatoes until smooth. Mix in the hot butter mixture, just until blended. Stir in the Cheddar. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Cover and set aside.
• Heat the oven to 375 degrees. Melt the remaining 2 tablespoons of the butter in a large oven-safe skillet with high sides or an enameled cast-iron braiser (at least 2 1/2-quart capacity) over medium heat. Add the onion, carrot, garlic, thyme and rosemary and cook, stirring often with a wooden spoon, until the onions are translucent and the carrots are just tender, about 10 minutes. Add the beef and the lamb and cook, breaking the meat up with a spoon, until it is no longer pink. (At this point, you can drain off some of the excess fat if you like.) Season the mixture to taste with salt and pepper.
• Add the tomato paste and stir, cooking until it is well combined, another 2 to 3 minutes. Sprinkle the flour over the mixture and cook for 1 minute. Add the beef stock and cook, stirring, until the liquid has thickened slightly. Stir in the parsley and remove the thyme and rosemary stems. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
• Top the meat mixture with dollops of the mashed potatoes then spread them out over the top. (Or transfer the meat mixture to a 3-quart casserole dish and spread into an even layer, and top with potatoes.) Transfer to the oven and, if the mixture is at the top edges of your pan, set a foil-lined baking sheet underneath the pan to catch any drips. Bake the pie until the potatoes have begun to brown and the edges are bubbling, about 30 minutes. Let stand at room temperature for 15 minutes before serving.