Cottage Pie

Happy St. Patrick’s Day! We had friends over for dinner to celebrate the holiday and I decided to make a cottage pie. This dish was extremely easy to make and we all thought it tasted delicious. We enjoyed other Irish goodies thanks to Kyle, who made a loaf of delicious Irish soda bread and a decadent bread pudding. We also sampled different Irish cheeses and of course, Irish beer. It was a fun night spent with wonderful friends.

Cottage Pie

Mashed Potato Topping:

• 5-6 large potatoes, peeled and cut into thirds
• 1/4 cup of milk
• 3 tbsp sour cream
• 2-3 tbsp Irish garlic and herb butter (or regular butter)
• 1/2 cup Irish extra sharp cheddar cheese, grated
• Sea salt and fresh cracked pepper
• Chives, chopped for garnish

Meat Filling and Sauce:

• 1 tsp olive oil
• 1/2 sweet yellow onion, diced
• 2 large carrots, diced
• 2 stalks of celery, diced
• 2 cloves of garlic, minced
• 1 1/2 lbs of lean ground beef (I used 96/4)
• 1-2 tsp Worcestershire sauce
• 1 cup frozen peas, thawed
• 1-2 tsp dried thyme
• Sea salt and freshly cracked black pepper, to taste
• 2 tbsp Irish garlic and herb butter (or regular butter)
• 2 tbsp flour
• 1 1/4 cup beef broth

How to Make a Cottage Pie

Make the potatoes by boiling a large pot of water. Peel the potatoes and cut them into thirds. Boil the potatoes for 10-12 minutes or until fork-tender.

Drain the potatoes and place them back into the pan. Add the milk, sour cream, butter, cheddar cheese, sea salt, and freshly cracked black pepper then mash with a masher or blend with a mixer until creamy and smooth. Cover with a lid and set aside.

While the potatoes are cooking, preheat the oven to 400 degrees.

Make the filling by heating the olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the onion, carrots, and celery then cook until tender, about 4-5 minutes.

Add the lean ground beef and cook thoroughly. Add the thyme, salt, pepper, and Worcestershire sauce.

Once the beef is done cooking, mix the peas into the mixture until well combined. Pour the beef filling into a large baking dish and set aside. In the same skillet over medium heat, add 2 tablespoons of Irish butter and 2 tablespoons of flour. Mix thoroughly then slowly add the beef broth. Season with sea salt and pepper.

Pour the sauce over the beef mixture and mix thoroughly. Top the beef and vegetable mixture with the mashed potatoes.

Bake for 30 minutes. Let cool for a few minutes before serving. Top with chopped chives. Enjoy.

Cottage Pie

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Prep Time: 15 minutes minutes

Cook Time: 50 minutes minutes

Total Time: 1 hour hour 5 minutes minutes

Course: Main

Cuisine: Irish

Servings: 8

Author: Pam - For the Love of Cooking

Equipment

• Large Baking Dish
• Large skillet

Ingredients

Mashed Potato Topping:

• 5-6 large potatoes peeled and cut into thirds
• ¼ cup of milk
• 3 tbsp sour cream
• 2-3 tbsp Irish garlic and herb butter or regular butter
• ½ cup Irish extra sharp cheddar cheese grated
• Sea salt and fresh cracked pepper
• Chives chopped for garnish

Meat Filling and Sauce:

• 1 tsp olive oil
• ½ sweet yellow onion diced
• 2 large carrots diced
• 2 stalks of celery diced
• 2 cloves of garlic minced
• 1 ½ lbs of lean ground beef I used 96/4
• 1-2 tsp Worcestershire sauce
• 1 cup frozen peas thawed
• 1-2 tsp dried thyme
• Sea salt and freshly cracked black pepper to taste
• 2 tbsp Irish garlic and herb butter or regular butter
• 2 tbsp flour
• 1 ¼ cup beef broth

Instructions

• Make the mashed potato topping by boiling a large pot of water. Peel the potatoes and cut them into thirds. Boil the potatoes for 10-12 minutes or until fork-tender.
• Drain the potatoes and place them back into the pan.
• Add the milk, sour cream, butter, cheddar cheese, sea salt, and freshly cracked black pepper then mash with a masher or blend with a mixer until creamy and smooth. Cover with a lid and set aside.
• While the potatoes are cooking, preheat the oven to 400 degrees.
• Make the filling by heating the olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the onion, carrots, and celery then cook until tender, about 4-5 minutes.
• Add the lean ground beef and cook thoroughly. Add the thyme, salt, pepper, and Worcestershire sauce.
• Once the beef is done cooking, mix the peas into the mixture until well combined. Pour the beef filling into a large baking dish and set aside.
• In the same skillet over medium heat, add 2 tablespoons of Irish butter and 2 tablespoons of flour. Mix thoroughly then slowly add the beef broth. Season with sea salt and pepper.
• Pour the sauce over the beef mixture and mix thoroughly. Top the beef and vegetable mixture with the mashed potatoes.
• Bake for 30 minutes. Let cool for a few minutes before serving. Top with chopped chives. Enjoy.

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