With Spring just around the corner, I wanted to focus on a more hearty meal this week.  Sheppard’s Pie is a classic dish that is incredibly easy to throw together with items you already have in your pantry, fridge, and freezer.  It’s a layer of mashed potatoes on top of a beef mixture baked together for a very yummy meal.

Potatoes mixture:  I know everyone has a favorite way to make mashed potatoes.  Some use cream cheese, extra butter, sour cream, and so on.  This time I used red potatoes with a pack of onion mix, butter, and milk mashed together.  I have found that using instant potatoes doesn’t taste as good in a Sheppard’s Pie.  It also doesn’t bake as well either.  I have found it burns a lot faster than real potatoes.  Taste the final product before you spoon it on to the beef mixture so it’s to your liking.

Beef mixture:  I don’t eat pork, so I don’t mix it with the ground beef.  I know traditional Sheppard’s Pie uses pork and sometimes lamb as well.  If you do, make sure all the meat is cooked properly and seasoned well.  With just ground beef, I season it with salt, pepper, basil, garlic, oregano, with chopped white onions and green peppers.  It will smell amazing.  You can add mixed vegetables as well if you prefer.  My family prefers the vegetables on the side instead.

Once both parts are made, spoon the beef mixture first into a deep pan, then spread the potatoes on top.  Stick in a 400 degree oven for 20 minutes uncovered.  I let it sit on the stove covered for about 10 minutes afterward before serving it.

This is a great dish for all the “meat & potato” lovers out there, and just in time for St. Patty’s Day.