(Lighter) Shepard's Pie

Another great recipe from skinnytaste.com.

Bold flavors and simple to put together. This will be a hit for dinner.

(Lighter) Shepard's Pie

(from here)

Potatoes:

1-1/2 lbs Yukon Gold potatoes, peeled, quartered

3/4 cup fat free chicken broth

2 tbsp fat free sour cream

1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper

paprika

Filling:

1 lb 95% lean ground beef

1 tsp oil

1 medium onion, diced

1 celery stalk, chopped

2 cloves garlic, diced

10 oz frozen mixed vegetables

2 tbsp flour

1 cup fat free beef broth

2 tsp tomato paste

1 tsp Worcestershire sauce

1/2 tsp dried rosemary

1/2 tsp dried thyme

1 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper
1/4 tsp garlic powder

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Start by starting the mashed potatoes. 

Peel and cut the potatoes.

Toss them into boiling water and simmer for 20 minutes or until they are soft enough to mash.

When they are finished, add the 3/4 cup fat free chicken broth, 2 tbsp fat free sour cream, 1/2 teaspoon salt and 1/4 teaspoon pepper.



Mash well and set aside for now.

They'll be pretty...moist. I figure that's because we're going to bake them and they need the extra moisture to not get dried out.



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Next, prep your veggies for the filling.

Garlic, onion, celery

Mixed veggies

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Get a big pan over med/high heat and add a tsp of oil.

Add the beef and salt and pepper.

When the beef has browned, remove it from the pan.

Drain off the fat and pour off the fat in the pan.

Stand by with the beef for now.

Add the veggies to the pan and sauté for 5-7 minutes.

Get your cup of fat free beef broth, 2 tsp tomato paste, 1 tsp Worcestershire sauce, 1/2 tsp dried rosemary, 1/2 tsp dried thyme, and 1/4 tsp garlic powder in a bowl for easier delivery.

Sprinkle 2 tablespoons of flour over the veggies and stir well to cook the raw flour flavor out. 60 seconds. It'll stick to the bottom a bit. Don't fret.

Pour your sauce into the pan and scrape up the stuck on flour on the bottom of the pan.

Whisk everything well and heat until the sauce thickens to a nice gravy, 3 minutes.

Add the veggies in and stir to combine.

Toss the beef back in the pan and stir to combine.

Cook for 3-4 minutes until the flavors combine.

Pour into a baking dish.

I used a 7x11 and will use a 9x13 next time as it ended up overflowing in the oven.

Use a 9x13, please.

Add the potatoes over top and score with a fork to give it some texture. Sprinkle with paprika.

Pretty.

Bake at 400F for 25-30 minutes or until the potatoes turn golden brown.

Mine ended up leaking pretty badly, so I pulled it kind of early. It was still great, but my potatoes weren't super flaky.

Regardless of potato texture, the dish was really quite good. The gravy had a really nice savory flavor to it, accented by the herbs that went great with the meat and potatoes. The veggies added nice texture and sweetness that worked with the texture of the potatoes.

This is a great, comforting dish that mom and the kids will love.

Enjoy!