An Easy-Peasy Shepherd's Pie Recipe!
As much as we’d like to live on cheese and Christmas cookies and prime rib for the rest of our lives, we’re only human. Even us food bloggers eventually have to hit the reset button. One of our favorite ways to do that is by doing the Whole30. This beef-laden homemade shepherd’s pie recipe came into being during a recent experience with Whole30. We wanted something really comforting and hearty, but of course didn’t want to mess up all our hard work. Lots of meat and veggies make for a rib-sticking filling, while parsnips give the topping that classic whipped starchiness that is an absolute must when it comes to shepherd’s pie. Dinner doesn’t have to taste like deprivation, even when you’re working hard to eat healthily, and this super satisfying recipe is the tasty, tasty proof.
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What is Traditional Shepherd's Pie?
Pure wintery comfort food, shepherd’s pie is a British staple that’s traditionally made with a lamb-based filling and topped with buttery mashed potatoes. In fact, if we were being real sticklers about it, a shepherd’s pie made with beef is usually called “cottage pie”. But we grew up calling it shepherd’s pie and so we’re sticking with that. In our healthier version of the recipe, a lightened up parsnip purée stands in for the classic, cream-laced mashed potatoes and is a perfect accompaniment to the rich, tomato saucy beef and veggies below it, making this shepherd’s pie the ultimate bowl of comfort.
What's in Shepherd's Pie?
Shepherd’s pie ingredients vary a bit recipe to recipe, as is true of so many humble and traditional recipes like this. People often made it with what they had—shepherd’s pie was traditionally a peasant food, nothing fancy here. Even today, a lot of people see shepherd’s pie as a way to use up what you’ve got—leftover mashed potatoes, or sautée veggies. Even though our Whole30 shepherd’s pie recipe is a bit modern in intention, the ingredients are humble and simple. You’ll need:
- Onions
- Garlic
- Carrots
- Celery
- Ground beef
- Canned tomatoes
- Tomato paste
- Chicken stock
- Cabbage
- Parsnips
How Do You Make Shepherd’s Pie From Scratch?
Like all of the world’s best casseroles, shepherd’s pie is all about the ease of a single-pan meal. In other words, you can totally make a shepherd’s pie from scratch, easily, even if you’ve never made one before. Here’s how it’s done:
- Brown the beef along with the onions, garlic, carrots, celery.
- Stir in tomatoes, tomato paste and chicken stock, then add the cabbage.
- Simmer the shepherd's pie filling for a few minutes to meld the flavors.
- Spoon it into a baking dish.
- Now make the parsnip purée by boiling the parsnips, then puréeing them with a bit of stock, salt and pepper until they've got the texture of mashed potatoes.
- Spread the purée over the beef filling and bake!
Tools You’ll Need:
More Easy, Beefy Whole30 Recipes To Try
Feel-Good Food To Feel Good About
Don’t you just love the idea that you can indulge in your favorite comfort foods while knowing that you’re also feeding your body with the nutrients it needs? It’s a great feeling, and we hope this healthy shepherd’s pie recipe makes you feel good inside and out! If you try it, we’d love to know. Share a photo and tag us on Instagram using @themodernproper and #themodernproper so that we can see your stuff! Happy eating!
