Shepherd's Pie
Shepherd's Pie is a classic recipe using ground lamb, although you can easily substitute ground goat or beef. It's best made using leftover mashed potatoes from the night before.
This recipe is written assuming that you already have mashed potatoes leftover (about 4 cups or so). That way you can make them however you like - completely creamy or with chunks and bits of potato skin, with rosemary or garlic and butter, with parmesan cheese and sour cream... you get the picture!
You'll need:
- at least one pound ground lamb
- garlic - a few cloves
- celery - a couple stalks
- carrots - about 4
- onions - one large, 2 medium or 3 small
- olive oil
- salt and pepper
- 3 tablespoons butter
- 1/4 cup flour
- 3 cups beef or mushroom broth
- leftover mashed potatoes
Preheat the oven to 400˚F. Chop enough vegetables to mostly fill a 9 x 13 baking dish: I used 3 small onions, a couple stalks of celery, and four carrots. Drizzle the vegetables with olive oil, salt, and pepper, stirring them around to coat evenly. Then bake for about 20 minutes. They should still be a little crunchy.
Meanwhile, cook the ground lamb: Mince a few cloves of garlic and put a drizzle of olive oil in a frying pan on medium heat. Add the garlic and cook until fragrant, then add the ground lamb and break it into smaller chunks with a wooden spoon or spatula. Season with salt and pepper. When the meat is cooked through scoop it into a separate bowl and set aside. To the pan add three tablespoons butter. When melted, whisk in 1/4 cup flour to form a thick paste. Add half a cup of broth and keep whisking until the liquid is absorbed. Add the rest of the broth a half a cup at a time, whisking until you have a thick sauce. Season with salt and pepper (and rosemary, thyme, or sage if you feel inclined).
Add the ground lamb to the pan of vegetables and pour the gravy on top. Distribute the mashed potatoes evenly over the whole thing. At this point you can top it with diced chives or shredded cheese to make it pretty and extra tasty.
Bake for about 30 minutes more or until the veggies are cooked through and the top of the pie starts to brown.