Shepherds Pie

I am not a huge fan of potatoes or red meat but every now and then I just have to have some. A wonderful way of having two things you don’t really like it to simply combine them together with a few extra bits of this and that…

In my first year of college I was sitting in the cafeteria enjoying lunch with another student (no I do not remember her name or what she looked like – sorry) when she mentioned the words “shepherds pie”. Right than and there I demanded for her to tell me more. This woman’s recipe sounded so amazing…mashed potatoes, ground beef and her secret ingredient was creamed corn. I remember writing down every word and before I knew it, I was baking my very own shepherd’s pie. People let me tell you it was delicious. So delicious that I have been using the same recipe for the last decade (okay maybe not decade, I’m not that old!!)

As most of you might have noticed I am a big foodie and over the years I have been watching Hell’s Kitchen on and off. I recently got back into watching the show and I absolutely wish I could meet Gordon Ramsey. On TV he seems like the worst dragon but a big part of me believes (and hopes) that he is a sweet gentleman in real life. For some reason I cannot get myself to believe that someone could be that cold and rude, but than again we don’t live in a perfect world so anything is possible.

This week I decided to step into Gordon’s “kitchen” and cooked his famous shepherd’s pie. Before I give you all the juicy details about my cooking experience this week, you’ll be happy to know that I wasn’t cooking in my pj’s and I am proud to inform you that maybe this will not become a habit after all.  The recipe called for a few simple ingredients and most of them I had at home. I purchased ground beef, Worcestershire sauce, red wine (the recipe called for about ¼ cup but believe me more was needed), tomato puree (this is something I never have in my cupboards) and the rest are things I always seem to have – carrots, onions, fresh rosemary & thyme (but I cheated here and used dry thyme), garlic, salt and pepper.

I began by cutting up a few potatoes and made some mashed potatoes. I always find it interesting what people use to make mashed potatoes. According to chef Ramsay one needs heavy cream, butter, egg yolks and parmesan cheese and according to my friend Shannon one needs butter and milk (a small note her – Shannon’s potatoes are AMAZING) but I make mine with butter and sour-cream. Don’t pull your nose at me…try it and you’ll see just how delicious it tastes!!!

While the potatoes were boiling, I stared all the prep work and made the beef mixture. Into a pan I poured some olive oil and added the meat (according to the recipe the meat had to be stirred as if my life depended on it – and that is just what I did).  After stirring for a few minutes, I then added the rosemary, thyme and garlic and did some more stirring. I then quickly HAD to add the carrots, onion and did some more stirring and last by not least added the sauce, tomato puree and red wine and did some more stirring. At this point my arm started hurting and I was in serious need of a glass of wine.  No where in the recipe did it indicate to put in the salt and pepper and truth be told salt and pepper wasn’t enough. After tasting the beef I had to added a little more of my own stuff….if I remember correctly I added some curry, cayenne pepper, and maybe even some cinnamon (guess I was going for the Greek flavor) and it all tasted good.

For the final part I scooped in my meat mixture into a deep dish and then spooned mashed potatoes over the top (I did leave some mashed potatoes and meat so that I could taste/eat while I was waiting for my pie to bake) and sprinkled a generous portion of parmesan cheese and into the oven it went for approximately 20 minutes. While the pie was baking, I was enjoying the exotic smell in the kitchen and ate the little that I had put aside but that little ended up being more than I thought it would be and by the time my pie came out I wasn’t that hungry anymore (a brief note here – do not taste/eat your food while cooking).

All in all I was happy with the recipe – the beef mixture was juicy and semi-sweet with a bit of a spice. The potatoes were oh so good with a crispy cheese topping and the combination of everything put together worked well but I don’t think I will make it again. Old habits don’t always die and as much as I enjoyed making and eating chef Ramsay’s shepherds pie – I enjoy my own version better and will be making it more often after I have mastered how to make my own creamed corn.