Cheesy Sheppherds Pie

By mikeimmell

Carol, I made this using our homemade canned BBQ sauce and home made Ketsup. We both totally loved it.

Ingredients

• FOR THE MASHED POTATOE LAYER:
• 4 to 6 white russet potatoes, peeled and cut into chunks
• 1 cup approx of milk
• 1/4 stick of butter
• 1/4 cup of shredded cheddar cheese **see note below
• salt and pepper to taste
• FOR THE MEAT LAYER:
• 1 lb ground beef or 1 lb ground turkey
• 1 small onion chopped
• 2 stalks finely chopped celery
• 2 roma tomatoes, seeded and chopped
• 2 tsp of prepared minced garlic from a jar
• 2 cans of mixed vegetables, OR we used 1 can of sliced carrots and 1 can of italian style green beans, **remember David doesn't like english peas lol so the mixed vegetables were out. Fresh or frozen vegetables would also work just as well.
• 1 pint jar (2 cups) of our homemade BBQ sauce
• 1/4 cup of our homemade ketsup
• several dashes of worchestershire sauce
• enough flour to thicken the meat mixture, approximately 1 or 2 tablespoons if needed
• 1 1/2 cups total shredded cheddar cheese (divided evenly into 3 1/2 cup servings)
• Salt and Pepper to taste
• OPTIONAL CRUNCHY TOPPING:
• 4 cups of corn flakes that have been finely crushed or put into a food processor. Add 1/2 tsp garlic powder to the crushed corn flakes. Now stir and mix in 2 tbsp melted butter.

Details

Preparation time 15mins
Cooking time 45mins

Preparation

Step 1

Pre-heat the oven to 350 degrees.

FOR THE MASHED POTATOE LAYER: Put the potatoes in a pressure cooker or in a large pot and cover with salted water. Cook until they are done. Pour off the extra water and put into your mixing bowl and whip potatoes gradually adding enough of the milk to make fluffy smooth mashed potatoes. Now while they are still hot whip in 1/2 cup of shredded cheese, add the butter and add salt and pepper to taste. Now set the mashed potatoes aside.


FOR THE MEAT LAYER: In a cast iron skillet, brown the ground beef or turkey along with the onions, and celery. Cook until the onions and celery are tender. Add the chopped roma tomatoes, the minced garlic, your canned, fresh or frozen vegetables of your choice, the BBQ sauce and the homemade ketchup. Cook for approximately 10 minutes until the meat mixture has a thick consistency. If it's not thick, then gently sprinkle some flour on top of the meat mixture with a flour sifter or strainer. Continue adding a little flour and cooking until you have a thick consistency and it's cooked long enough to cook the flour. Now add the 2nd 1/2 cup serving of cheddar cheese to the meat mixture. Stir well and pour into a lg deep dish 9 inch glass pie plate, or a large casserole dish that has been sprayed generously with cooking oil or pam. Now spread the mashed potatoes over the top of the meat mixture and sprinkle the crunchy crushed corn flake topping over the top if you are using it. Now put in a pre-heated 350 degree oven and bake for about 20-25 minutes. Remove from oven and sprinkle the 3rd 1/2 cup serving of cheddar cheese over the top of the mashed potatoes and return to oven and cook an additional 10 minutes or just until the cheese has melted and the dish is bubling hot.