1. To cook more
2. To cook from cookbooks that we already own
On Valentine's Day 2010, my boyfriend gave me this awesome cookbook called The Irish Pub Cookbook & I've been anxious to try out every single recipe! Up to just recently, the only recipe I've done is the Bread & Butter Pudding with Hot Whiskey Sauce (sooo delicious), mainly because we had most of the ingredients. But now, I'm ready to try more recipes & the 2nd one I've tried is:
SHEPHERD'S PIE
my pretty plate!
I had to do a couple of things differently because we didn't have the ingredients that the book calls for. I think it still turned out super delicious!
Recipe adapted from The Irish Cookbook
THE FILLING:
3 tablespoons oil (I use any oil that's safe on high heat...or margarine.)
2 pounds of ground lamb (Didn't have lamb, so used ground beef! I imagine this recipe would be tasty with ground turkey or chicken. Not legit shepherd's pie, but as long as there's a tasty protein, that's all that matters to me!)
Salt & freshly cracked pepper
1 medium onion, chopped up (I use sweet onion or white onion.)
2-3 carrots, chopped up (Didn't have regular carrots, but had baby carrots! Just chopped a bunch up and estimated what 2-3 carrots would look like. Also, if I were to use regular carrots, I would choose not to peel them. More rustic and healthy! Would wash them first, of course.)
2 tablespoons of parsley, minced
a teaspoon of fresh thyme, minced
1.5 tablespoons of all-purpose flour
3 cups of beef stock or broth (Either homemade or from the store. I used 3 beef bouillon cubes mixed with 3 cups of boiling water.)
THE TOPPING:
2 pounds of russet potatoes, peeled & chopped up into 1 inch pieces
1/2 cup of milk
2 tablespoons of butter (They recommend Kerrygold Irish butter, but I didn't have that, so used good ol' Country Crock Margarine!)
3 tablespoons of cheddar cheese, shredded (They prefer Irish cheddar, but all we have is the shredded 4 Cheese Mexican Blend! Still yummy.)
HOW TO:
For the filling:
1. Get out a large skillet and put it on the stove at medium heat. Put in some oil, enough to coat the bottom. Once it gets hot enough, add all of the ground meat and cook for about 5-7 minutes, or until the meat is browned. Make sure to season with salt & pepper! Take off the heat and transfer the meat to a large bowl. If you want to drain some fat off, transfer the meat by using a slotted spoon.
2. Leave the pan on medium heat. Add a little bit more oil to the skillet. Put in all the onion and cook for about 3-5 minutes, just long enough for the onion to be soft, but not browned.
3. Add in the carrots, parsley, & thyme and stir a little bit, cooking for 2-3 minutes. The vegetables need to be coated with the oil.
4.Then stir in the flour, cook for about 1-2 minutes.
5. Add the beef stock and bring it to a boil, making sure to scrape up all the delicious browned bits at the bottom of the pan (the best part!).
6. Then add the meat back in, reduce the heat to low, and simmer it, uncovered. Stir every once in a while for about 20-25 minutes, just so that the meat is tender and the sauce is thickened. Season once more with salt & peppah!
look at that yummy stew goodness
7. Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F.
For the topping:
1. Take out your large pot and cook your potatoes in boiling water for 12-15 minutes, just until they're tender.
Tip: Don't heat the water beforehand! You want your potatoes to cook evenly, so put the potatoes in the pot first, put cold water over them (just enough to cover them) and then bring to a boil.
2. Drain the potatoes & mash them up! If you have a masher, great! If you're like me and have never thought of owning such a device, improvise! I use my detachable beating whisk from my electric mixer, haha.
doing what I can as a poor grad. student
3. Add the milk & butter and stir until it's smooth.
Putting it together:
1. Spoon the meat stew into a large casserole dish. You can do individual casserole dishes if you want separate portions.
2. Spatula the mashed potatoes on top of the meat stew, trying to layer it on as evenly as possible. The recipe recommends piping it, if you're feeling creative.
3. Bake in the oven for 10-12 minutes!
4. Take it out of the oven, then preheat the broiler.
5. Sprinkle this already delicious-smelling pie with CHEESE. The recipe calls for 3 tablespoons, but I use a few HANDFULS. Just enough shredded cheese to have a nice crust on top.
6. Put it back in the oven, underneath the broiler, 4 inches away from it! (Don't wanna burn it.) Broil for 1-2 minutes. The potatoes will brown slightly and the cheese will bubble. Yum.
Then, VOILA!:
oh-so-delicious-shepherd's-pie!
Thank you, Irish Pub Cookbook! This is the 2nd time I've made it and it was just as easy as the first time! Fun to make & even more awesome to eat. The boyfriend approves of it, that's for sure. :)
Plus, it makes scrumptious leftovers. I personally think it's better the next day because the flavors have even more time to get all marinated with each other.
This was a perfect meal to make after the end of a wonderful weekend!
Cheers to the week ahead!
