My daughter, Christian,  texted me one day and asked if I knew how to make a Shepherd’s Pie.  I answered my usual answer:  “Of course I can!”  In truth, I had never made one in my life.  But I knew what it was, and after googling several recipes for it I came up with my own version.  This can be VERY simple to make, as it is simply a ground beef/vegetable dish, topped with Mashed potatoes.

SHEPHERD’S PIE (the easy way and the hard way)

1 lb. ground beef (you can always add some pork or use Ground Turkey.  It’s the seasoning that really counts)

1 small chopped onion

1 pkg brown gravy mix

1 pkg frozen mixed vegetables

Brown the ground beef and onion.  Drain the grease if there is too much.  Sprinkle the gravy mix over and add the water as directed on the package.  Add the veggies and cook till all is mixed and just a little juicy.  Put the mix into a serving dish and leave room for the mashed potatoes on top.

To make homemade mashed potatoes, Peel and quarter 4 medium potatoes.  Boil about 15 minutes, or till fork tender.  Drain potatoes (reserve a little liquid just in case they are too dry and you need to thin them down a little).

Mash the potatoes with 1 tsp. salt, 1/2 to 1 stick butter, and drizzle warm cream in as you mix.  (don’t do this in a blender.  They get too thin.  Some people even like the lumps!  NOTE:  In my search for shepherd’s pie potato toppings I ran across Anne Burrell’s.  She adds 2 egg yolks to the hot potatoes.  It add richness and especially with the cream it makes them SO yummy.  Top the meat mixture with the potatoes and bake about 15 minutes at 425 degrees OR Broil for 5 minutes to brown the top of the pie.

This is SO yummy.  When I said you can make it the difficult way, I was referring to you coming up with your own concoction.  For instance, I had some leftover short ribs and gravy that I added to the meat mix.  This is something kids will eat, so you can leave out whatever veggies they don’t like.  Many of the recipes I found called for peas only.  Do your own thing and  Knock yourself out!  Just make a delicious ground beef/gravy/veggie mixture, and top it with mashed potatoes!  You could even add peppers or Mexican spices.  Next time I think I’m going to make individual servings in large muffin tins.  Wouldn’t that be cool at a party?