Once A Month Cooking: Shepherd’s Pie

Shepherd’s Pie is one of Marc’s favorites from my once a month cooking repertoire and it is really easy to make. It is one of those comfort foods, I think, at least in my family.

The thing is, that there are a lot of steps to it so I don’t make it as much as I should. I “scaled” this recipe down to serve eight because I realize that most of you have smaller families than I do. In fact, there are countries with smaller populations that this household…well, at least towns in Arkansas. I have driven through some of them. In fact, we used to camp at a park in a place called Cove Lake, Arkansas, and we would joke about moving to some of the nearby towns and doubling the population.

I pick up vintage casserole dishes at thrift shops and freeze my OAMC meals in them because I like the convenience of just thawing, and tossing in the oven without transferring from freezer bags to dishes. The generally cost about $2-3 and I don’t worry if they get chipped or broken. If you don’t have a ton of casserole dishes, line your dish with aluminum foil before you add the ingredients. Be sure the foil hangs over the sides of the dish. Freeze, and then remove the casserole. Wrap the remaining foil around it and place in a freezer bag. When you are ready to thaw and bake it just take it out of the bag and place it back in the casserole dish.

The mashed potatoes on this Shepherd’s Pie recipe are different than what you might normally use but these freeze, and thaw, perfectly.

This casserole, also known as Cottage Pie, is perfect for the busy cook. In fact Shepherd’s pie is actually supposed to be made with lamb, while cottage pie is made with beef. Make it with any ground meat for an easy, frugal, filling, and delicious dinner.

Serve it with a salad, freezer rolls, and cookies for a quick meal.

Potato Mixture

• 6 large potatoes, cubed. I like to mash them with the peels on. You can peel if you want.
• 3 cloves garlic peeled
• 1 1/2 c sour cream
• 1 c cream or half and half
• 1/2 stick unsalted butter
• 1/4 c chopped chives
• 1/2 c chopped onion
• salt and pepper to taste

Meat Mixture

• 2 tablespoons butter
• 1/4 c finely chopped onion
• 1/3 cup shredded Cheddar cheese
• salt and pepper to taste
• 6 carrots, sliced and cooked
• 1 lb of green beans, cooked
• 1/2 lb mushrooms
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 2 onions, chopped
• 1-1/2 pounds lean ground beef, ground lamb, ground pork, or a mixture of all three.
• 2 tablespoons and 2 teaspoons all-purpose flour
• 1 can cream of mushroom soup
• 1 can cream of celery soup
• 1/2 c half and half
• 1 c shredded cheddar for sprinkling over the top

Put the potatoes, onion, and garlic in a pan and nearly cover with water. Bring to a boil and simmer until tender. Drain.

Transfer to a large bowl. Add cream, sour cream, salt, pepper, butter, and chives. Mash with a hand masher until it is a texture that you like. I like to leave it more like “smashed”potatoes than perfectly smooth mashed potatoes. Set aside.

Heat the olive oil in a large frying pan. Add mushrooms and onion. Cook until onion is transparent. Add ground meat and cook until well browned, seasoning to taste. Pour off excess fat.
Add soups and half and half. Mix well.

Spread the ground beef in an even layer on the bottom of a casserole dish. Next, spread a layer of green beans. Now spread with a layer of carrots. Top with the mashed potato mixture and sprinkle with remaining shredded cheese. Let cool to room temperature and freeze.

To bake: Thaw in refrigerator overnight and bake at 375 for 30-40 minutes. Allow to stand for a few minutes before serving.

I don’t normally like to use canned soups but for freezer cooking they seem to hold up the best.