Tag Archives: shepherd’s pie

Pork Shepherd’s Pie

 

This is a super simple recipe I came up with when I had made pork chops and mashed potatoes, then had copious amounts of leftovers. It is so easy, and takes only 5-6 ingredients. To save even more time, you could use raw pork chunks, and store-bought mashed potatoes. If interested in other Shepherd’s Pie recipes, read my earlier posts.

Or even one step further, use dried potato flakes in the liquid. Then you will not have  a top layer, but will cut down on steps. You  can use whatever type of veggies you like, or not use them at all. I just like to try to stuff vegetables into anything and everything. Frozen mixed vegetables are a cheap and healthy way to pack in extra vitamins & filling fiber.

Ingredients:

  • 2-3 small pork chops, diced
  • 1 cup frozen mixed vegetables
  • 1 can biscuit dough
  • 1 1/2 cups mashed potatoes
  • 1/2 cup milk
  • 2-3 tbsp flour (or 2-3 tbsp potato flakes)

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Step 1: If cooking the mashed potatoes, simple microwave on high 8-10 minutes, or cook in the oven at 350 for 15 minutes, until you can mash them with a fork. Cook the pork chops on medium heat in a skillet for 4-5 minutes, then turn and cook other side 2-3 minutes. Cut to make sure there is no pink inside.

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Step 2: Spray an oven-safe baking pan, and layer in the veggies and the pork chops. It is best to thaw the veggies, or you will end up with extra-watery pie as they thaw.

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Step 3: In a pan, combine the milk and flour. Heat until just simmering, and ensure all flour dissolves. You could also use cornstarch, or dried potato flakes. Or cream of potato soup.

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Step 4: Pour the milk mixture over the veggies & pork.

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Step 5: Cover in a layer of mashed potato. Season with salt, pepper, garlic, onion powder, paprika, anything you like. Spread out the raw biscuits on top of the potato layer.

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Step 6: Bake in the oven at 350 for 20-25 minutes.

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Sweet Potato Shepherd’s Pie

 

A favorite of some, a mystery to others, the sweet potato is a nutritional powerhouse long under-appreciated by the mainstream. Sweet potatoes are an excellent source of beta-carotene, vitamin C, copper, and several B vitamins. They also contain digestive-health-promoting fiber, potassium, and phosphorus.

Luckily more and more people are getting on the sweet potato band wagon. While delicious on its own baked or steamed with a drizzle of cinnamon-sugar or maple syrup, there are many ways to use this delightful vegetable. Cook as you would a regular white potato and use instead for healthful results.

This recipe takes a classic comfort food and switches up the ingredients to create a new classic that’s far more nutritious and healthy. Small swaps can lead to big results, and can introduce your taste buds to whole new worlds. Starting small is a good way to slowly introduce someone (or yourself) to a new flavor without being overwhelming.

I use half white and half sweet potatoes for the topping here, and create my own creamy filling to keep the fat content in check. Stuffing as many extra veggies as possible in is also a great addition.

Ingredients:

  • 2 sweet potatoes
  • 2 regular potatoes
  • 1 cup shredded cooked turkey or chicken
  • 1 16oz bag of frozen mixed vegetables
  • 1/2 cup soy/almond milk
  • 1/2 cup sour cream or plain greek yogurt

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Step 1: Dice your potatoes into small chunks. Bring a large pot of water to a boil, and simmer the potatoes for 10-15 minutes, until soft. Drain, and mash together.

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Step 2: Spray an oven-safe pan, and add the frozen mixed vegetables. You could microwave and thaw them first if you have time. Add the milk, sour cream, and turkey and mix well. Leave the turkey out if you’d like a vegetarian dish.

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Step 3: Cover the veggies with the mashed potatoes. Pop into the oven at 350 for 45-60 minutes. Cook longer if you didn’t thaw the veggies first, less time if using fresh chopped veggies that are dry.

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Scoop out a helping and season as you wish. The sweet potatoes do live up to their name and will add a slight sweet taste to the dish. I think just about any mix of veggies would work here, but I especially liked the broccoli/cauliflower and zucchini. This dish has tons of healthy nutrients and minerals with very little fat.

 

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Another chapter in my life

 

To all the readers who are in the New England praying fervently for spring to finally be here, so the snow mountains can begin melting and we can reclaim half the roads, I am one of you now!

Yes, that’s right, the Budget Epicurean has physically relocated across the country from Denver, Colorado to New Haven, Connecticut.

I question my sanity too, join the club.

Jobs brought us out here, but I already have a sneaking suspicion the beauty and ocean may make us happy about the change. Of course, driving a UHaul with a car being trailered behind it and two dogs in the cab for 32 hours, the final 12 of which are a force-you-to-do-20-on-the-highway blizzard isn’t exactly a picnic. But we made it!

I am quite excited to try all that the New Haven area has to offer, and it seems there is so much here! Of course, you may experience an uptick in seafood-related reviews and recipes. Cannot tell you how excited I am that the ocean is only 30 minutes away! And NYC only 2 hours by train. Lots of exploring to be done this year.

So dear readers, that’s the scoop. Hope you stick around for whatever comes next.

 

I’ll leave you with some ideas for St. Patrick’s Day this Tuesday. These recipes also work great for St. Patrick’s Day leftovers like leftover mashed potatoes, or leftover cabbage.

Shepherd’s Pie my way

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As you can see in a post prior to this, I had recently made a large amount of mashed potatoes & cauliflower. I had quite a bit left over, so I was browsing some of my favorite recipe web sites for ideas. I wanted to make pierogi (I am slovak & polish you know) but I was out of eggs (used my last one in my breakfast BELT recipe!) so I couldn’t make the dough.
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Then I stumbled across this recipe for “Italian Irishman’s pie” on Allrecipes.com. It used sausage instead of beef in shepherd’s pie. Since I had a pack of Johnsonville Cheddarwurst Brats in the freezer, I figured this could work. So with what I had on hand, I pared it down to serve two (since a large amount of food almost always goes to waste) and gave it a try. It came out pretty tasty!
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Ingredients:
2 brats, sliced thin (reserve the drippings)
2 tbsp flour
1/2 cup water
1/4 cup cream or milk
Salt & pepper
1/2 zucchini, diced
1/2 yellow squash, diced
1/2 onion, diced
1 – 2 cups mashed potatoes
Optional: 2 slices cheese, or 1/2 cup shredded cheese
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Step 1: Cook the brats until they’re done, put into a loaf pan.

Step 2: To drippings, add flour & brown for 2 minutes. Add water, cream, salt & pepper to taste, whisk until smooth. Bring to a boil, cook until thickened. Pour the gravy over the brats.

Step 3: In the same pan, add diced vegetable. Cook until tender, stirring often, about 10 minutes. Add the zucchini, squash and onion to the loaf pan.

Step 4: Layer the mashed potatoes on top of everything. Season with salt & pepper to taste.

Now you have layered your sausage, gravy, veggies and potatoes. You can brush the top with some melted butter or margarine if you like.

Step 5: Bake in the oven set to 350 for 20 minutes.

Step 6: The gravy and potatoes should be bubbly. I added 2 slices of colby cheese on top and put it back in the oven for another 5 minutes to melt.

Step 7: Spoon a big helping onto a plate and enjoy! You can top with extra shredded cheese and salt/pepper if you like.

Delicious, filling and not as bad for you as you might think, assuming you used the potatoes/cauliflower mixture!