Paleo Shepards Pie

From the Functional Foodie 

 

the filling:

• 3 pounds of ground lamb (use beef if you can't get lamb)
• 2 large carrots, grated or chopped fine
• 1 large onion, grated or chopped fine
• 2 tablespoons of fresh rosemary, minced
• 2 tablespoons of fresh thyme, minced
• 5 cloves of garlic, minced or grated
• about 2 tsp. of Worcestershire sauce (American versions usually contain HFCS, English version doesn't. coconut aminos can be used instead too.) 
• small can of tomato paste
• a few glugs of red wine (don't cook with a wine that you wouldn't drink with dinner. cooking with alcohol only concentrates the flavor you are using)
• olive oil
• salt & pepper 

the mash:

• 2-12 oz. bags of frozen cauliflower (i use the kind you can microwave right in the bag)
• 2 tablespoons of melted grass fed butter (or coconut oil. it will have a coconutty flavor.)
• 4-5 tablespoons of heavy cream (or coconut milk)
• salt & pepper

to make the mash, microwave (or steam if you are using fresh) the cauliflower until tender. put all of the florets into the food processor as well as the salt, pepper and melted butter. turn the processor on and while everything is pureeing, add in the heavy cream. you may need more or less depending on your taste and the consistency of the cooked cauliflower. do a little quality check (QC) on seasonings, alter if needed and place in a bowl to the side.

preheat your oven to 400 degrees and preheat a pot to medium-highish heat. add the olive oil and then the lamb. season with salt and pepper. as the meat cooks, crumble it into small pieces. meanwhile, prep your veg and herbs.



once the meat is cooked through, add the vegetables and herbs, garlic last. season with salt again. ***SIDE NOTE: it may seem like i use a lot of salt  in my cooking. i was taught to season EVERY layer of your cooking. you should be tasting during each step of your cooking process, no matter what meal it is. you will end up using less salt overall.





you want the onions and carrots to get a chance to cook, so give them 6 or 7 minutes to get tender. finally add in the Worcestershire (or substitute), tomato paste and wine. reduced the heat a little bit and let the wine cook down a bit, about 3 more minutes.



 pour the meat mixture into a glass baking dish. i recommend putting it on a sheet pan first in case of any bubble overs in the oven.

next, spread the cauliflower mash over the meat mixture.

bake the pie for about 20 minutes in a 400 degree oven or until everything starts to get golden and delicious. this made about 6 servings and believe it or not, it tasted better the second day!