Thank goodness I made a batch of shepherd’s pie yesterday!

It’s a chilly, rainy Sunday in New York. A perfect day to sit on the sofa binging on streamable movies and TV, scoffing down bowls of comfort food. But I can’t today, the New York City Marathon is taking place and it’s my duty to cheer on those resilient folks.

I live on the New York City Marathon route so it’s no hardship to do my duty. I combine bathroom breaks with snack time and enjoy a small portion of shepherd’s pie each time. It’s so good.

 

Shepherd's Pie by Diverse Dinners

 

Shepherd’s pie is such a comforting meal. This recipe has a huge portion of rich mashed potatoes on top of Guinness laced ground lamb combined with carrots, celery, peas and onions. It’s totally delicious and worth the hit to your calorie intake.

I’ve been experimenting with beer, adding it to drinks and dishes, and each recipe has been a thumbs up. Adding Guinness to this shepherd”s pie recipe, gives the ground lamb an intense depth of flavor that meat and vegetable stock is not able to provide. However, if you want to share it with your kids, you can replace the Guinness with lamb or beef stock.

Living on the New York City Marathon route is awesome. I live at the mile 23 marker, near the fluid and food stations. At this point you see many families and friends waiting to cheer on their loved ones, it is so moving. I saw people joining their family members in the race to run the last few miles with them. I was moved to tears quite a few times, I’m a terrible softie.

Check out the video below of the runners as they pass the fluid and food station. Surprisingly, so many of them still have energy to wave and dance to the music as they pass the entertainment station.

 

 

I think I’m going to have to make another shepherd’s pie very soon, as this one is almost done. If you give this recipe a try, you will find that it disappears very quickly too. The only way to combat this issue, is to do what I do, and make this again, and again.

 

Shepherd's Pie by Diverse Dinners

 

Print Recipe

Shepherd’s Pie

Prep Time15 minutes
Cook Time1 hour
Total Time1 hour 15 minutes

Ingredients

  • 2 1/2 lb Yukon potatoes peeled and quartered
  • 6 tbsp unsalted butter
  • 1/2 cup half and half
  • 3 tsp cooking oil
  • 2 lb ground lamb
  • 2 cups carrots diced
  • 1/2 cup celery sliced and/or diced
  • 1 cup yellow onions diced
  • 1 cup English peas
  • 3 garlic cloves grated
  • 1 cup Guinness
  • 1/2 cup vegetable stock unsalted
  • 1 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
  • 1/4 cup tomato puree
  • Salt and pepper to taste

Equipment & Utensils

  • Large pot
  • Potato masher
  • Large cast iron skillet or skillet and 9 inch oven proof dish
  • Colander
  • Foil if needed - to cover cast iron skillet
  • Whisk

Instructions

  • Place potatoes in a large saucepan then cover with water and add a pinch of salt.
  • Place on high heat.
  • When water begins to boil, lower to medium heat and allow to cook.
  • Cook for approx. 15 minutes, until you able to pierce each potato easily with a fork.
  • Drain potatoes and return them to saucepan.
  • Add butter and half and half, and then mash vigorously with masher until free of lumps.
  • Season mashed potatoes with salt and pepper, then cover and set aside once done.
  • Heat 2 tsp of oil in skillet, then add half of the ground lamb.
  • Cook lamb until water is released and then browned, moving meat around the pan to avoid sticking
  • Once cooked and browned tip lamb into a colander with a bowl underneath it to catch the oil.
  • Shake colander to catch all of the oil then set lamb aside and return oil to skillet
  • Add 1 tsp of cooking oil to skillet, then repeat process with balance of ground lamb, remembering to drain and return oil to skillet.
  • Place pan on medium heat then add carrots, celery, onions and peas, mix together thoroughly then cover. Use foil if your skillet has no cover.
  • Lower heat to low and allow to cook for 10 mins.
  • Whisk together stock, Worcestershire sauce and tomato puree and set aside.
  • Raise heat to medium then add browned lamb and garlic then mix thoroughly.
  • Add Guinness and stock mixture then mix throughly again.
  • Add salt and pepper to taste, then mix throughly once more.
  • Cover skillet and lower heat to low and cook for approx. 20 minutes, or until vegetables are cooked.
  • If you're not using a cast iron skillet, transfer ground lamb to oven proof dish before patting down into place.
  • Top with mashed potatoes then score with a fork horizontally and then vertically.
  • Cook in preheated oven at 375 for 15-20 mins, or until potato becomes golden.

Notes

Overcrowding ground lamb in the skillet will result in the release of a lot of water. To avoid steaming over browning, it is wise to brown 1lb of ground lamb at a time.
Scoring the mashed potatoes will ensure it is cooked to golden all over.