Shepherd’s Pie (Provided photo — Yvona Fast)

What did you feed your family on Superbowl Sunday? You need something easy to prepare early in the day and reheated for game eats.

This week I made shepherd’s pie. This casserole originated in the British Isles, where meat pies have been served since the Middle Ages.

Shepherd’s Pie is traditionally made with lamb. In Britain, when made with beef, it is known as Cottage Pie. Most Americans, however, use ground beef and still call it Shepherd’s Pie.

These are not true pies, since they lack a floury crust. The casserole is still considered a pie because the topping functions like a crust, forming a flavorful layer on top of the meat and vegetable filling.

They are made with a meat and vegetable filling (usually peas and carrots) and topped with mashed potatoes. Since parsnips are common in Britain and Ireland, it is quite likely that mashed parsnips topped the pie before potatoes made their way across the Atlantic.

A third similar casserole is Chinese Pie. This dish dates back to railway workers in French Canadian provinces. It’s made with potatoes, corn and meat. Most Canadian workers ate these separately, but workers of Asian origin combined them. The French-Canadian railway workers called the dish pâté chinois — Chinese pie. This dish replaces the peas and carrots traditionally used in Shepherd’s Pie with corn. But really, in all of these casseroles, you can use any vegetables you have on hand.

I had leftover lamb from a leg-of-lamb roast, so I chopped that up. I made gravy with the meat drippings. I didn’t have peas and carrots, so I used a cabbage blend. I made my mashed potato topping lighter with half potatoes and half cauliflower. You could also cook and mash potatoes and parsnips for a sweeter flavor. For a vegetarian version, substitute lentils, walnuts or mushrooms for the meat.

Whichever way you make it, this “pie” is a wintertime comfort classic. It can use frozen veggies, leftover potatoes and leftover meat — or ground meat — for a simple one-dish meal. Put together a salad while the pie bakes for extra veggies.

–

Shepherd’s or Cottage Pie

–

Ingredients:

A little cooking oil (like avocado or olive)

1/2 pound leftover meat, cubed or 1/2 pound ground meat

1 onion

1 or 2 stalks celery or 4 oz. sliced mushrooms, optional

1 teaspoon salt

10 ounces frozen vegetables (like green beans, peas, carrots or combination)

1/2 cup gravy (see below)

2 cups mashed potatoes (see below)

2 tablespoons fresh minced parsley, optional

1 egg

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

Peel and dice the onion. Coat bottom of skillet with oil; add onion and ground meat, if using. Add sliced celery and mushrooms, if using. Sprinkle with salt; cook 5 to 7 minutes to brown meat and cook the onion a bit. (If using leftover cooked lamb or other meat, cube and add after onion and celery are cooked). Add the vegetables, and cook, stirring, until no longer frozen. Remove from heat and stir in about 1/2 cup of gravy. Turn into an oiled casserole dish.

Combine mashed potatoes, parsley and egg. Spread on top of meat mixture.

Bake 35 – 45 minutes, until heated through and slightly brown on top.

Serves 2 – 4.

Mashed Potatoes

1 or 2 potatoes, or 1 potato and 1 or 2 parsnips, or 1 potato and 1 cup cauliflower florets

1/2 teaspoon salt

fresh minced parsley

1 or 2 tablespoons Milk

1 or 2 tablespoons sour cream or butter

1 tablespoon fresh minced parsley

salt, pepper to taste

Directions:

Cook potatoes (and cauliflower or parsnips, if using) in salted water until soft, about 20 minutes (bring to a boil, then lower heat to simmer). Drain. Mash, adding a little milk and sour cream to achieve desired consistency. (Use a potato masher, a ricer or a food mill). Add fresh parsley, if desired.

Gravy

Ingredients:

3/4 cup meat drippings from a roast

3 tablespoons flour

3/4 cup broth or milk or combination

OR

3 tablespoons butter

3 tablespoons flour

1 1/2 cups beef broth or stock

salt, pepper and herbs, to season

Directions:

Whisk flour into drippings until blended. Or melt butter, and whisk in flour until blended. Add broth or milk while whisking. Season to taste with salt, pepper, and herbs like thyme, parsley or marjoram. Continue cooking on simmer and whisking until well combined and thick. Remove from heat when desired consistency is achieved.

——

Author of the award-winning cookbook Garden Gourmet: Fresh & Fabulous Meals from your Garden, CSA or Farmers’ Market, Yvona Fast lives in Lake Clear and has two passions: writing and cooking. She can be found at www.yvonafast.com and reached at yvonawrite @yvonawrites.