Last night for dinner I made a great English dish called shepherd's pie, and Josh and I enjoyed it with some Bachelor Bitter beers from Deschutes Brewery. (Bachelor Bitter, by the way, is the best beer I have ever tasted. For those of you who live in the Northwest, it's available at Fred Meyer in the beer aisle. As for the rest of you, I have no idea where you can get it.)
The shepherd's pie took a while to make, but it wasn't a complicated recipe, and it made so much food that we'll have leftovers for days. I highly recommend making it.....
Shepherd's Pie
from The Illustrated Kitchen Bible
Makes 4-6 servings
30 minutes prep time, 30 minutes cooking time
Ingredients for the topping:
2 lb baking potatoes, peeled and chunked (approx. 5-6 medium potatoes)
2 large leeks, white and pale green parts only, split lengthwise, sliced
1/3 cup whole milk, warmed (I used 1% and didn't warm it, and it worked fine)
4 tbsp. butter
salt and freshly ground black pepper
Ingredients for the filling:
1.5 lb ground lamb (I used a pound of ground beef)
2 tbsp. vegetable oil
1 large onion, chopped
1 garlic clove, minced
2 carrots, sliced
1/3 cup hearty red wine
2 tbsp. all-purpose flour
1 cup lamb or beef stock
2 tbsp. chopped parsley (I used 1 tbsp. parsley flakes)
1 tbsp. Worcestershire sauce
1 tbsp. chopped rosemary (I used 1 tsp. dried rosemary)
1. To make the topping, boil the potatoes in a large saucepan of lightly salted water until almost tender, about 15 minutes. Add the leeks and cook until the potatoes are tender, about 5 minutes longer. Drain well and return to the saucepan.
2. Mash the potatoes and leeks together. Return to low heat and stir in the milk and butter. Season with salt and pepper. Remove from the heat. (Note: To save some time, you can always use instant mashed potato mix for this part.)
3. Meanwhile, make the filling. Preheat the oven to 400F. Cook the lamb in a large frying pan for 5 minutes, stirring to break up the meat, until lightly browned. Pour off the fat. Transfer the lamb to a bowl.
4. Heat the oil in the frying pan over medium heat. Add the onion and garlic and cook, stirring often, for about 4 minutes, or until softened. Add the carrots. Return the lamb to the frying pan.
5. Add the wine, increase the heat the high, and cook for 3 minutes, or until the wine has evaporated. Stir in the flour, then the stock, parsley, Worcestershire sauce, and rosemary. Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat to low and simmer for 5 minutes. Season with salt and pepper.
6. Spread the filling in a baking dish and cover with the potato topping. Place on a baking sheet (I forgot to do this; I just stuck in on the rack in the oven) and bake for 30 minutes, or until the topping is golden. Let stand 5 minutes, then serve straight from the dish.
Note: This dish can be prepared, covered, and refrigerated up to 1 day in advance - you just need to increase the baking time to 40 minutes.
The shepherd's pie took a while to make, but it wasn't a complicated recipe, and it made so much food that we'll have leftovers for days. I highly recommend making it.....
Shepherd's Pie
from The Illustrated Kitchen Bible
Makes 4-6 servings
30 minutes prep time, 30 minutes cooking time
Ingredients for the topping:
2 lb baking potatoes, peeled and chunked (approx. 5-6 medium potatoes)
2 large leeks, white and pale green parts only, split lengthwise, sliced
1/3 cup whole milk, warmed (I used 1% and didn't warm it, and it worked fine)
4 tbsp. butter
salt and freshly ground black pepper
Ingredients for the filling:
1.5 lb ground lamb (I used a pound of ground beef)
2 tbsp. vegetable oil
1 large onion, chopped
1 garlic clove, minced
2 carrots, sliced
1/3 cup hearty red wine
2 tbsp. all-purpose flour
1 cup lamb or beef stock
2 tbsp. chopped parsley (I used 1 tbsp. parsley flakes)
1 tbsp. Worcestershire sauce
1 tbsp. chopped rosemary (I used 1 tsp. dried rosemary)
1. To make the topping, boil the potatoes in a large saucepan of lightly salted water until almost tender, about 15 minutes. Add the leeks and cook until the potatoes are tender, about 5 minutes longer. Drain well and return to the saucepan.
2. Mash the potatoes and leeks together. Return to low heat and stir in the milk and butter. Season with salt and pepper. Remove from the heat. (Note: To save some time, you can always use instant mashed potato mix for this part.)
3. Meanwhile, make the filling. Preheat the oven to 400F. Cook the lamb in a large frying pan for 5 minutes, stirring to break up the meat, until lightly browned. Pour off the fat. Transfer the lamb to a bowl.
4. Heat the oil in the frying pan over medium heat. Add the onion and garlic and cook, stirring often, for about 4 minutes, or until softened. Add the carrots. Return the lamb to the frying pan.
5. Add the wine, increase the heat the high, and cook for 3 minutes, or until the wine has evaporated. Stir in the flour, then the stock, parsley, Worcestershire sauce, and rosemary. Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat to low and simmer for 5 minutes. Season with salt and pepper.
6. Spread the filling in a baking dish and cover with the potato topping. Place on a baking sheet (I forgot to do this; I just stuck in on the rack in the oven) and bake for 30 minutes, or until the topping is golden. Let stand 5 minutes, then serve straight from the dish.
Note: This dish can be prepared, covered, and refrigerated up to 1 day in advance - you just need to increase the baking time to 40 minutes.
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