Shepherd’s pie is one of those dishes that you don’t see that often, but is such a good comfort food if done right. Gordon Ramsey’s recipe is probably one of the most well-known because he’s talked about it pretty often in some of the show’s he’s done.
But there’s a healthier various out there that a friend of mine swore by, so after a little research, I found the one closest to what I wanted to try. This sweet potato variant hits some really good notes with the slightly sweet top layer and the very savory bottom layer. Both of my kids loved it, and despite the fact that my oldest doesn’t like sweet potato much, she ate more than one serving.
Now, instead of the Cajun trinity of equal parts celery, bell peppers, and onion, we go a little more classical with the French mirepoix of two parts carrot, one part celery, and one part onion. This adds good flavor and great texture to the meaty filling. Garlic and rosemary helped round out the flavors and a tube of tomato paste added the perfect level of umami to the dish.
I very much recommend a 12-inch cast iron skillet for this, as you can do most of the cooking in it and then put it under the broiler to get a little extra browning on top of the sweet potato.
Sweet Potato Shepherd’s Pie
Three large sweet potatoes, peeled and cut into large chunks
1 lb. ground beef
1 lb. ground pork
3 medium carrots, peeled and diced
3 stalks celery, diced
1.5-2 yellow onions, diced
1.5 cups belly portobello mushrooms, diced
1 tube tomato paste
2 tbsp. minced garlic
2 tsp. paprika
2 tsp. rosemary
1 tsp. salt
1 tsp. black pepper
rub the sweet potato chunks in a tiny bit of olive oil and salt, then roast at 425 degrees for 30 minutes, gently tossing them every 10 minutes so they don’t burn. Set aside and allow them to cool.
In a 12-inch cast iron skillet, cook the mirepoix (onions, celery, and carrots) over medium heat until soft and onions are slightly translucent. Add the garlic and cook it a bit, then add the mushrooms.
Keep stirring vegetables so they cook evenly until the mushrooms are soft. Add the rosemary, paprika, salt, and pepper. Set the vegetables into a bowl and add the ground meat to the skillet, cooking in batches.
When all the meat is browned, add the vegetables back in and stir until well-mixed.
Add the tomato paste and mix it into the mixture. Take the skillet off the heat. Set the broiler on high.
In a mixing bowl, mash the sweet potatoes until smooth. You can scoop it onto the meat mixture in the skillet OR you can be a bit fancier and use a piping bag to pipe it onto the mixture.
Set the skillet in the oven with the broiler on and let the sweet potato brown just a little bit.
Take it out and let it rest a bit before serving.
Hope y’all have a great weekend. Enjoy some stellar football games.