My Shepherd's Pie

Total Time: 1 hr Preparation Time: 15 mins Cook Time: 45 mins

Ingredients

• Servings: 6
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 1/4 lbs ground lamb
• 1 large onion, diced
• 1 teaspoon minced garlic (or two cloves minced)
• 2 carrots, diced
• 1/4 lb mushroom, diced
• salt
• black pepper
• 1 tablespoon tomato paste
• 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
• 1/4 cup cold water
• 1 1/2 cups beef stock (or lamb stock if available)
• 1 1/2 teaspoons worcestershire sauce
• 6 sprigs thyme
• 1 bay leaf
• 1 1/2 lbs mashed potatoes (instant mashed potatoes work fine)
• 10 ounces frozen peas
• 1/4 cup grated parmigiano-reggiano cheese

Recipe

• 1 preheat oven to 400°f.
• 2 heat the olive oil in a saute pan or oven-safe pan. add the lamb and saute until broken up and beginning to brown, 3-4 minutes.
• 3 add onion, garlic, carrots, and mushrooms and tomato paste. sprinkle with salt and pepper to taste. cook another 4-6 minutes.
• 4 stir flour into water to form a slurry. add beef stock and worcestershire sauce to pan; when it starts to bubble, add flour slurry. stir until slightly thickened. add thyme and bay leaf. reduce heat to medium-low, cover, and simmer 20 minutes.
• 5 use your favorite mashed potato recipe, or prepare instant as directed on package.
• 6 when 20 minutes have passed, add frozen peas to pan. recover and simmer another 5 minutes. remove bay leaf and discard.
• 7 if your saute pan is not oven-safe, transfer mixture to an oven-safe dish. top with mashed potatoes, spreading evenly to cover the surface of the dish. sprinkle with grated parmigiano. bake in preheated oven 15-20 minutes. if the top has not browned, turn on the broiler for 3-4 minutes.