Cottage Pie

by Julie on April 13, 2011

in Entree Recipes,Recipes,Smart Food

I’ve been calling this shepherd’s pie all week. And then I found out that because I made it with beef, it is actually cottage pie. Oops.

The pie was delicious and filling. The only problem? I forgot to add some flour and broth to bind the ingredients together and add a bit of moisture. Another oops.

I included in italics the way that I would make it next time, but fair warning: I haven’t actually tried this yet. And word to the wise: it is still amazing just the way it is without the flour and broth.

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Cottage Pie

Serves 4

1 1/2 pounds red potatoes, skin on
4 tablespoons unsalted butter
3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
5 medium carrots, chopped (about 1 1/2-2 cups)
1/2 yellow onion, chopped (about 1 cup) 3 cloves garlic, thinly sliced
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1 teaspoon dried rosemary
1 pound ground beef

Preheat the oven to 400F and grease an 8×8″ baking dish.

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Place the potatoes into a large pot and cover with cold water. Cover and bring to a boil. Remove cover and boil until the potatoes are fork tender. Drain the potatoes, reserving 1/2 cup of the cooking water. Using a masher or immersion blender, mash the potatoes with the cooking water and butter until creamy.

In the meantime, heat the olive oil in a large skillet over medium-low heat. Add the carrots, onion and garlic. Cook, stirring occasionally, until tender and beginning to brown. Stir in the oregano and rosemary and cook for 1-2 minutes.

Next time, I’d add in 1 tablespoon of all-purpose flour here and stir well. Then I’d add 1 cup of broth and cook until it was partially reduced.

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Remove the vegetables from the pan and spread in the baking dish. Add the beef to the skillet and cook until the inside is no longer pink.

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Layer the beef on top of the vegetables. Top with mashed potatoes.

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Bake for 30-40 minutes at 400F, until the potatoes start to brown on the top. Allow to cool for 5-10 minutes before serving.

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{ 8 comments… read them below or add one }

1 Jenny @ Fitness Health and Food April 13, 2011 at 2:49 pm

mmm mmm what a fantastically veggie idea!

I have to say I usually add beef or lamb to my “pies” but I need to try it veggie-fied :)

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2 Victoria (District Chocoholic) April 13, 2011 at 2:57 pm

It’s actually kind of cool to see an in-progress recipe. It would be fun to see a series of blog posts on the evolution of a recipe.

Or, maybe I’m a big cooking/blog nerd.
Victoria (District Chocoholic) recently posted..Triple Chocolate Macarons- Double Baking Challenge Success

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3 Julie @savvyeats April 14, 2011 at 5:08 pm

That’s okay, I am too! ;)

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4 Jessica @ Dishin' About Nutrition April 13, 2011 at 4:25 pm

Wow this looks fabulous! I made a healthified shepherds pie for St. Patty’s but this looks awesome, I’ll have to add this to my growing list of recipes to try! :)
Jessica @ Dishin’ About Nutrition recently posted..Glazed Beets

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5 Heather April 13, 2011 at 5:47 pm

I’ll do ya one better. My mom makes this with corn and calls it, “Hide the Pea.” It looks delicious, comforting and I want some.
Heather recently posted..Perma-Smiles

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6 Julie @savvyeats April 14, 2011 at 5:09 pm

Yum. I love corn. I assume there are peas mixed in there, too?

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7 Heather April 14, 2011 at 5:35 pm

Oh, nope, no peas. There was supposed to be one hidden for one lucky eater to find, but my mom actually never did that part.

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8 Jenn April 14, 2011 at 4:16 pm

This looks yummy and easy to make. Next time I take out ground beef, definately gonna try it!

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