Alexander’s school just had their International Night where all the children were invited to dress up in the traditional garb of their ancestry and to bring food of their heritage. Being of English descent, I decided to do Shepherd’s Pie.

My sister is famous for her Shepherd’s Pie, so I texted her right away and asked for her recipe. She’s been making it since college and has perfected the method, so she doesn’t have a set recipe per se. She had great ideas for some variations as well.

My sister’s versions are a far cry from Shepherd’s pies I had while at University in London in the early 1990s before Jamie Oliver with the mushy peas and bland flavor. I called a friend from London just to confer what the most traditional version is.

Glad I did, found out that Shepherd’s Pie is only made with lamb and Cottage Pie is made with beef.

Next make a version that was also healthier. My sister uses half and half and lots of butter in her mashed potatoes so we had to cut that out and up the vegetables.

End result, my husband ate 3/4 of the dish (4 servings) right after it came out of the oven.

Enjoy!

Avec Amour, Victoria and Alexander

Traditional Shepherd’s Pie

Yield 6 servings

1 10 oz Box of Frozen Peas and Carrots

1 Pound Ground Lamb

1 Tablespoon Olive Oil

2 Cups Onions, large chop

1 Tablespoon All Purpose Flour

1 1/2 Cups Beef Broth

1 teaspoon Fresh Rosemary, finely minced

1 Tablespoon Worcestershire Sauce

1 Tablespoon A.1. Sauce (for even more authentic taste use HP Sauce)

2 Pounds Idaho Potatoes, peeled and about 1″ cubed

1 Tablespoon Butter

1/2 Cup Milk

1/2 teaspoon Salt

1. Set box of frozen peas and carrots on counter to defrost a little, in a sauce pan over medium high heat brown ground lamb,

drain off excess fat

and remove lamb from pan.

2. Return pan to medium heat and add olive oil, sauté onions until golden brown,

add flour to onions

and stir cooking flour and onions for a minute,

add beef broth and stir occasionally while bringing to a boil, add Rosemary, Worcester and A.1. Sauces, sauce should thicken a little,

return ground lamb to mixture.

Remove from heat and let cool.

3. Pre-heat oven to 375. Bring water to a boil in a 4 quart sauce pan, add potatoes and cook for about 15 minutes until fork tender, drain water, add butter, milk and salt,

mash

with a potato masher.

4. Spray a 2 quart oven dish with non-stick cooking spray or brush with olive oil, add all of meat mixture,

on top spread a layer of peas and carrots, they should be still very cold but no longer a frozen solid block,

top with mashed potatoes,

smooth top with back of spoon or offset spatula,

take a fork and drag thru top of potatoes to make ridges,

bake for 30 minutes then place under the broiler for 3 – 5 minutes for top to get golden brown.