Cottage Pie from Cowboy Kent Rollins

 

Cottage Pie (aka) Shepherd’s Pie

 

Growing up we always had “Shepherd’s Pie” that was made with ground beef, corn and sometimes if we were lucky, a can of peas would find their way mixed in with the corn, and then it was topped with mashed potatoes with dollops of butter melted over the top.  It was an old time favorite comfort food. 

As an adult, it was still always one of my favorites, but Tall Cool ☺ne didn’t care for it, needless to say it has not been on the menu over the years. This weekend we watched a video on one of my favorite YouTube channels and two things came out of it. 

1. I learned something new (I think you should learn something new every day if you can): Shepherd’s Pie is actually made with ground lamb, (which makes perfect sense seeing how shepherds tend the sheep). 2. I’ve now found a pie that can and will be added back to my favorite meals menu.  I kind of wonder why they don’t call it “Cattle Pie”, “Heifer’s Pie”, “Moo Pie”, or “Bull Pie”.

 

I took the ingredients from the video and used my own quantities (not from his list) so if mine don’t match Kent’s, don’t hate me.

 

1¼ lb. ground beef

2 stalks celery, shredded

2 carrots, shredded

1 orange pepper, shredded

1 lg. onion, shredded

2 tbsp. tomato paste

¼ cup beef broth

½ cup red wine (¼ for the pie and ¼ for the chef)

2 tbsp. Worcestershire sauce

1 can white hominy, drained

1 can chili peppers, drained

4 cloves garlic, minced (I used the whole head)

2 egg yolks

3 lbs. potatoes, peeled, cooked, drained, and mashed

½ cup cream (I used half & half)

1½ cups white cheddar cheese, shredded

1 cup Monterey jack cheese, shredded

¾ cup fresh parmesan, shredded

Seasonings: oregano, basil, salt, pepper, thyme (I don't have his original seasoning spice yet, but I ordered some for next time).

 

In cast iron Dutch oven, cook the ground beef and drain off grease.  Add celery, carrots and onion and cook the moisture out of the veggies, but don’t let the veggies get brown (5-6 minutes).  Add the tomato paste, Worcestershire sauce, beef broth, wine, and stir to combine and let it get a little bubbly.  Carefully stir in garlic and hominy. Remove from heat and set aside.

 

Prepare potatoes.  Once they are cooked and drained and all the liquid is steamed out of them, mash, mash, mash.  Add some cream (I used half & half) and the egg yolks.  Mash, mash, mash.  Add the cheddar and jack cheese, then stir in the chili peppers.

 

Preheat oven to 400º

 

Transfer the beef mixture to a casserole dish.  (I almost missed this tidbit of information. Tall Cool ☺ne pointed it out to me). Can’t cook this in the cast iron in a 400º oven or it would burn to a crisp.

 

Trowel the potatoes over the beef mixture.  Make little plops with a spoon for aesthetics, sprinkle with parmesan cheese.  Bake for 45 minutes.  Let cool 10-15 before serving.

 

So freaking good.  Thank you, Cowboy Kent Rollins.

 

Enjoy♥

© Crackerberries 2024

Shepherd's Spaghetti Pie

Pasta Style Shepherd’s Pie

½ lb spaghetti

½ lb ground beef

1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil

4 stalks celery, diced

1 small onion, chopped

1 cup diced banana peppers

1 tsp minced garlic

1 cup sliced mushrooms

1 packet onion soup mix

½ cup stout beer

2 tbsp butter

2 tbsp flour

1 cup milk

1½ cups shredded cheddar cheese

Fresh ground black pepper

Break spaghetti into thirds and cook according to package instructions.  Drain, rinse and set aside.

Preheat oven to 350°.

Sauté onion and celery in olive oil for 2-3 minutes; add ground beef, peppers, and garlic and continue cooking until burger is no long pink.  Add garlic, onion soup mix and beer and cook just until well blended and bubbly.  Spread mixture in lightly greased baking dish.

In medium sauce pan, melt butter, stir in flour and add milk all at once.  Stir constantly over medium heat until it starts to thicken.  Stir cheese just until it starts to melt.  Add pasta and mix well.  Pour past mixture over top of meat and vegetables.

Bake 350° for 30-35 minutes, until top starts to brown.  Remove from oven and let stand 10-15 minutes before serving.  Add ketchup if desired.

© Crackerberries 2012