Shepherd's Pie A La Paul

I had never heard of shepherd's pie until a friend of mine made it for me years ago.  I fell in love with this dish right away- it almost defines comfort food.  In fact, this same friend made me her version of shepherd's pie as my meal the night before my first marathon attempt.  Since I have been cooking fairly healthy meals for a while, I have avoided the meat and potato culture.  It has been a long time since I've had one.

The other day, I decided that I wanted to try something new and prepare my own version of shepherds pie.  Now, there will be many who might criticize my use of butter in this recipe, but what are mashed potatoes without butter?

If you even hint a suggestion of margarine, I will quote to you something I found on Trepho's Facebook page just earlier today:  "As for butter versus margarine, I trust cows more than chemists." -Joan Dye Gussow

So, without further ado, here goes Shepherd's Pie A La Paul

MEAT

1 pound organic, grass fed ground beef

1/2 onion diced

2-3 banana or other mildly spicy pepper diced (seeds are no seeds is entirely your choice)

Frozen Peas

Salt

Pepper

Chili Powder

Cumin

Garlic Powder

Cayenne Pepper

Coriander

Brown the meat, as the meat is finishing, add the onion and peppers and saute until done.  Then add the other spiced to your taste.  Finally add the frozen peas and cover the pan, turning off the heat.  Set aside. 

POTATOES

Several red skinned potatoes

Butter... about 1/2 stick

Milk (I used 1%, for creamier consistency you can use cream or whole milk)

Salt

Pepper

Garlic powder

Basil

Cut up the potatoes (leaving the skin on) and put them in water.  Bring to boil.  When potatoes are done drain the water.  Add some of the butter, salt, pepper, garlic powder and basil to your taste, then add some milk.  Finally, mash the potatoes until desired consistency is achieved (I like it a bit lumpy).  Set aside.

Preheat the oven to 450 degrees

In a large bowl, put the meat mixture on the bottom, then spread the potatoes on top.  Add more butter to the top by cutting it into squares and placing it around.  You're not covering the top, you're dotting the top with butter.  Place the bowl in the oven and set a timer for 10-15 minutes.  Check when the timer beeps.  You may have to add 10 minutes.  The dish is finished when the potatoes are browning on the top.  You're looking for a golden brown in several spots, not necessarily covering the top.  Here's a picture:

This just screams COMFORT!

The little spice, plus the other flavors in the dish will tingle your taste buds and fill your belly with warm comfort.  Enjoy!

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Thanks for reading!