Paleo Shepherd’s Pie

Ah, Shepherd’s Pie. Shepherd’s Pie, also known as Cottage Pie, is traditionally an English dish made with lamb or mutton and topped with potatoes. We changed it up a bit to fit our diet and found it to be equally as satisfying. Spices are key in this dish. The recipe below is really modest with the spices. If you are like us and LOVE spices and tons of flavor, experiment and add more! This dish looks really complicated, but I assure you, it is not. This really is a Paleo comfort food! It is still cold here in Montana and this dish really hit the spot for dinner!

Ingredients: 
For the topping:
– 1 head of cauliflower
– 1 tbs parsley
– salt and pepper to taste
For the filling:
– 2 tbs tomato paste
– 1 orange bell pepper (chopped and de-seeded)
– 1 clove of garlic (peeled and diced)
– 2 cups beef broth
– 3 carrots (chopped)
– 3 sticks of celery (chopped)
– 1/3 cup yellow onion (chopped)
– 1 pound ground meat (we used grass-fed beef)
– 1 tsp paprika
– 1/2 tsp thyme
– 1/2 tsp rosemary
– 1 tsp black pepper
– 1 tsp salt
– 2tbs cooking oil (we used avocado oil)

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Instructions: 
For the filling: 
1.  Add bell pepper, garlic, onion, carrots and celery to a skillet with oil. Sauté until carrots are done (those take the longest).
2. Add ground meat and spices. Saute until meat is browned.
3. Add broth and tomato paste and sauté until the “sauce” thickens. Set aside.

For the topping: 
1. Core and chop the cauliflower.
2. Boil in a pan with a pinch of salt until cauliflower is easily mash-able.
3. Drain water.
4. Using an immersion blender (or other masher/mixer) start mashing the cauliflower.
5. Add salt, pepper and parsley.
6. Continue mashing until you have “mashed potatoes”. Some people like theirs chunky, others like theirs smooth. Do what works best for you.

Put it all together: 
1. Pre-heat over to 400 degrees.
2. Using a ramekin or casserole dish, layer the bottom with the filling mixture.
3. Scoop and spread the cauliflower mash on top.
4. Bake at 400 degrees until the top of the mash is browned and the filling is bubbling. This took us about 30 minutes, but every oven is different.
5. Remove from oven and let sit for about 5 minutes to let it cool and firm up.
6. Serve and enjoy! We ate this as a complete meal, but you could certainly add a side salad or other green vegetables. We also topped it with some green onions that we had.

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Did you make this recipe? Leave us a comment and let us know how it turned out!

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