Shepherd's Pie

  

  
Ahh, Shepherd's Pie, one of the more wonderful comfort foods.  I like comfort food anytime, but certain recipes take full advantage of holiday meal leftovers.  After Thanksgiving, I always make a Turkey Tetrazzini.  After Easter, I prepare a Shepherd's Pie with leftover lamb.  The recipe is quite simple: soften a mirepoix combination of celery, carrots and onion, add the meat, herbs and flour and stock for a gravy and top with mashed potatoes.  The potatoes can cook while you're softening the vegetables and rebrowning the meat.  That means the whole dish can be prepared in 45 minutes.  If you don't have leftover lamb, you can also make this dish with ground beef.  While that stops being a traditional Shepherd's Pie, you should always make a recipe the way you like it.  Consider also adding peas, tomatoes or corn to the vegetables and Worcesteshire sauce to the gravy.  Serves 4.
    
Ingredients:
4 potatoes, peeled and chopped
2 tbsp olive oil
1/2 onion diced
1 carrot, peeled and diced
1 celery stalk, diced
1 tsp dried thyme
1/2 tsp dried rosemary
1 1/2 lbs cooked lamb, diced
1 tbsp flour
1 cup beef stock
3 tbsp buttter, melted
2 tbsp milk, warmed
     
Directions:
Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.  In a medium pot of cold water, heat the potatoes over high heat until boiling and then simmer for 12 minutes or until soft.  While the potatoes are cooking, heat the oil in a saute pan over medium heat.  Add the onion, carrot and celery and cook until softened, 5 minutes.  Stir in the thyme, rosemary and lamb.  Cook the lamb a few minutes to brown.  Stir in the flour and cook a minute further.  Stir in the beef stock and bring to a simmer, stirring to make the gravy.  When the potatoes are cooked, drain and run through a ricer if desired.  Mix in a bowl the potatoes, 2 tbsp of butter, milk, salt and pepper to taste.  Add more warmed butter and milk if needed to further soften the mashed potatoes.  Pour the lamb mixture into a baking dish.  Spread the mashed potatoes into a layer over the lamb mixture.  Arrange the remaining butter on top of the potatoes to help them brown.  Bake in the oven for approximately 30 minutes, until the potatoes are golden.  Serve.