Shepherd’s pie is a meat pie topped with mashed potatoes. It is a hearty and delicious dish that the whole family will enjoy. A traditional shepherd’s pie is made with minced lamb, but personally I prefer to use mince beef. No matter what meat you use though,  it is a great tasting meal.

Ingredients

1 Tbs olive oil

1 brown onion, finely chopped

1 carrot, peeled and finely chopped

2 celery sticks, finely chopped

500g beef mince

2 Tbs plain flour

500ml (2 cups) beef stock

6 Tbsp Worcestershire sauce

2 Tbsp tomato paste

4 large potatoes, peeled, cut into pieces

40g butter

125ml (1/2 cup) milk

salt and pepper

Method

1. Heat oil in a large saucepan or frying pan over a medium heat. Add onion, carrot and celery and cook, stirring for 5 minutes or until soft. Add mince and cook, stirring to break up lumps until beef changes colour.
2. Add the flour and cook, stirring for 2 minutes or until combined. Add stock, Worcestershire sauce and tomato paste. Bring to the boil. Reduce heat to low and cook, stirring occasionally for 30 minutes or until sauce thickens. Taste and season with salt and pepper.
3. Meanwhile, peel and cook potatoes in salted water, until soft. Drain, add butter and mash until smooth. Add milk and stir until combined.
4. Preheat oven to 200C. Spoon mixture into a 2L (8 cup/2 quart) capacity ovenproof baking dish. An Anchor Hocking clear dish is great for this.
   Anchor Hocking Sculptured Design Ovenware with Bonus Dessert Cups and LidsTop with mashed potatoes, using a fork to spread over mixture. Bake for 20 minutes or until potatoes are golden brown.
5. Serve with cooked frozen green peas.   

Note: This recipe can easily be adapted to be gluten-free by simply substituting the plain flour for gluten-free flour and making sure that the Worcestershire sauce you use does not contain wheat.