| | Shepherd’s Pie

Author / John

Shep 3If you wondering what to do with the beef stock you made. . .

Hearty and satisfying–this is great for an easy weekend meal while watching football or make ahead for a no fuss weeknight dinner.  Whether you choose ground lamb, beef, bison, venison or turkey it’s packed full of protein, veggies and excellent with either white or sweet potatoes. Get creative and let me know your favorite.

IMG_8730

Prep the veggies and put the taters on to boil

IMG_8732

Melt the fat over medium heat in a large cast iron skillet or dutch oven; add the onions and carrots, cover and cook until tender — about 5 minutes.

IMG_8733

Add the lamb or other meat

IMG_8734

And the mushrooms and cook until the meat is no longer pink and the mushrooms have softened.

IMG_8736

Add the tomato paste, thyme, marjoram, salt and pepper and beef stock and bring to a simmer. Add the arrowroot or cornstarch dissolved in cold water to the meat mixture, bring to a very slight boil and cook stirring constantly until slightly thickened — about a minute.

IMG_8737

Place in a buttered casserole dish

IMG_8741

Mash your potatoes adding butter, salt & pepper and enough raw milk or broth to yield a nice spreading consistency.  I personally prefer a hand held potato masher to a mixer as it leaves a few lumps.  Carefully place dollops of the potatoes on the top the filling

IMG_8742

Taking care to spread evenly and sealing at the edges. Sprinkle with paprika and add a little butter. Bake at 375 degrees for 30 or until bubbly and the top is slightly golden.

Shep 1

Enjoy!

Recipe & Ingredients
1 1/2 lbs ground lamb (pastured)*
2 tbs healthy fat (tallow, lard, coconut oil)
1 medium organic onion, chopped
3 organic carrots, chopped
8 oz fresh organic mushrooms, sliced
1 tbs tomato paste (no added junk)
½ tsp thyme
½ tsp marjoram
Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
1 cup beef stock (homemade preferred)
1 tbs. arrowroot powder or non GMO cornstarch
2 tbs cold water
*pastured ground beef, bison or venison may be substituted
Potato topping
3 cups white potatoes
Butter or ghee to taste
Broth or raw milk
Paprika, if desired
Variation: I’ve also made this with ground turkey and sweet potatoes. Slightly sweet but a nice change of pace

Preparation
In a large cast iron skillet or Dutch oven heat fat over medium heat. Add onions and carrots; reduce heat, cover and cook until tender—about 5 minutes. Add the ground meat and mushrooms and cook until the meat is no longer pink and the mushrooms are slightly tender. Add the tomato paste, thyme, marjoram, salt and pepper and beef stock and bring to a simmer.
Stir the cold water into the arrowroot or cornstarch powder until dissolved. Add to the meat mixture until slightly thickened—about 1 minute taking care to not overcook.
Meanwhile cook the potatoes in water on a low boil until tender. Add butter or ghee to taste along with a little broth or raw milk for a nice spreadable consistency.
Place in a lightly buttered 2 quart baking dish. Add in the meat mixture, top with the potato mixture taking care to spread evenly and seal to the edges. Sprinkle w/ paprika and add a couple dollops of butter.*
Bake at 375 about 30 minutes or until bubbly and the potatoes are just slightly golden.
Serves 4 – 6
*You can prep to this stage and refrigerate for up to 2 days for an easy make ahead weeknight meal. Do allow the casserole dish to set at room temperature for an hour before placing in the oven.

For more power athlete friendly recipes check out Paula Lean Primal Queen

Share this article
FacebookTwitterLinkedInShare
AUTHOR

John

John Welbourn is CEO of Power Athlete and Fuse Move. He is also creator of the online training phenomena, Johnnie WOD. He is a 9 year veteran of the NFL. John was drafted with the 97th pick in 1999 NFL Draft and went on to be a starter for the Philadelphia Eagles from 1999-2003, appearing in 3 NFC Championship games, and for starter for the Kansas City Chiefs from 2004-2007. In 2008, he played with the New England Patriots until an injury ended his season early with him retiring in 2009. Over the course of his career, John has started over 100 games and has 10 play-off appearances. He was a four year lettermen while playing football at the University of California at Berkeley. He graduated with a bachelor's degree in Rhetoric in 1998. John has worked with the MLB, NFL, NHL, Olympic athletes and Military. He travels the world lecturing on performance and nutrition for Power Athlete. You can catch up with John as his personal blog on training, food and life, Talk To Me Johnnie and at Power Athlete.

7 Comments

  1. Luke Summers on January 22, 2015 at 1:09 pm

    Woah… This is happening TONIGHT!

  2. Guillermo on January 22, 2015 at 1:21 pm

    Ufff that looks tasty! Here in Argentina we cook something like that called “Pastel de papas” (Potato cake) but it’s made with cow. Time to start trying other meats. Oh, at the top, we usually use cheese, and do the same baking till it’s golden.

  3. Paula on January 22, 2015 at 1:57 pm

    @luke Serves one!

  4. Ingo B on January 22, 2015 at 2:23 pm

    Luke – be right over.

  5. BarbarianBlake on January 22, 2015 at 3:13 pm

    Shepard’s pie is my favorite!

  6. Luke Summers on January 22, 2015 at 7:39 pm

    its happening….

    real time, going in the oven…

  7. Paula on January 23, 2015 at 3:10 am

    @luke I am impressed. Did you make that or did Ashley? And if that’s a gas stove I’m jealous.

Leave a Comment





SUBSCRIBE TO OUR NEWSLETTER

Never miss out on an epic blog post or podcast, drop your email below and we’ll stay in-touch.

  • This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.