Paleo Shepherd's Pie

Paleo Shepherd’s pie

This is a great paleo whole-30 friendly version of shepherd’s pie. It’s the definition of (a healthier version of) comfort food, perfect for these cool fall nights. We usually use beef in this recipe at our house because that is what we tend to have on hand, (which I think technically makes this a cottage pie), but this recipe works with beef or lamb.

Ingredients

For the cauliflower mash topping:

 1 head of cauliflower

 4 tablespoon butter

 ½ teaspoon kosher salt

 ¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

 ¼ cup chicken stock

For the filling:

 2 tablespoons oil

 1 onion, diced

 2 carrots, peeled and diced small

 1 rib of celery, diced small

 1 cup chopped greens

 2 cloves garlic, minced

 1 ½ pound ground beef or lamb

 1 teaspoon salt

 1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper

 2 tablespoons garbanzo flour, or your favorite gluten-free alternative flour

 2 teaspoons tomato paste

 1 cup chicken broth

 1 teaspoon freshly chopped rosemary leaves

 1 teaspoon freshly chopped thyme leaves

 1/2 cup fresh or frozen peas

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.

For the cauliflower mash: Cut the cauliflower into florets and place in a large saucepan and cover with cold water. Cover and bring to a boil. Once boiling, uncover, decrease the heat to a simmer and cook until tender, approximately 10 to 15 minutes. Drain the cauliflower in a colander and then return it to the saucepan. Using an immersion blender, blend the cauliflower with the butter, salt and pepper, and ¼ cup chicken stock and continue to mash until smooth. You can use a potato masher for this, but an immersion blender will make a creamier mash.

While the cauliflower is cooking, prepare the filling. Place the oil into a 12-inch cast iron skillet and set over medium high heat. (If you don’t have a cast iron skillet, a) you should get one, you’ll love it! and b) that’s totally fine; use a regular sauté pan – you will just need to transfer the meat mixture to a baking dish later, as noted in the directions below). Once the oil is warm, add the onion, carrot, celery, and greens and sauté until they begin to soften, approximately 4-5 minutes. Add the garlic and stir to combine. Add the beef, salt and pepper and cook until cooked through and brown, about 3-5 minutes.

Sprinkle in the flour and toss until coated, and cook for another minute. Add the tomato paste, chicken broth, rosemary, thyme, and stir to combine. Bring to a boil, reduce the heat to low, cover and simmer slowly 10 to 12 minutes or until the sauce has thickened.

Add the peas to the meat mixture and stir to combine. If you are cooking in a cast iron pan, remove the pan from heat, and make sure the meat is spread evenly in the pan (you can bake the whole thing in your cast iron so no need for another baking dish- hooray for less dirty dishes!). If you are cooking the meat in a standard sauté pan, transfer the meat mixture into an 11 by 7-inch glass baking dish and spread it evenly. Top the meat mixture with the mashed cauliflower, smoothing from the edges inward with a spatula. Place on the middle rack of the oven and bake for 25 minutes. Remove to a cooling rack and let sit for 5-10 minutes before serving. Enjoy!