Mathew's Cottage Pie

This weekend when I was out of town, my husband shocked the heck out of me by making this cottage pie. Previously, his culinary experience consisted of a blue box of macaroni and a pot of boiling water. He told me how he suffered through the experience, but his suffering made an outstanding dish—most certainly the best shepherd's pie I've ever tasted. This recipe hails from Jane Hornby's What To Cook & How To Cook It. I highly recommend this book for anyone who is not a very confident cook. She has pictures of every single step—perfect for the visual learner!


Ingredients

1lb. 2oz. leanest ground beef (or ground turkey)
2 small yellow onions
2 stalks celery
3 carrots, cleaned and peeled
1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
4 tablespoons butter
2 tablespoons tomato paste
2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
few sprigs fresh thyme
2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
2¼ cups low-sodium beef broth
2¼ lb baking potatoes
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup milk
1 tablespoon unbleached white flour
Salt and pepper

Roughly chop the vegetables and set aside. Clean and peel the potatoes. Chop them up into quarters and place them in a large pot filled with cold water and a teaspoon of salt.

Heat a large frying pan over high heat and add the ground beef. Break up with a wooden spoon as it browns. When the meat is brown and dry, transfer to a bowl lined with paper towels to absorb any excess fat.

Put the chopped vegetables into a food processor and pulse until they are finely chopped.

Place the frying pan over medium-low heat and add the oil and half of the butter. When the butter foams, add the vegetables and cook gently for ten minutes, until softened.

Stir the meat back into the pan, then add tomato paste, Worcestershire, thyme leaves, and 1 teaspoon Dijon. Cook for 1 minute, then add the beef broth. Stir until the mixture comes to a boil. Partially cover the pan, then simmer 1½ hours on low, until the meat is tender.

While the meat is simmering, make the mashed potatoes. Start heating the pot filled with potatoes on high until it boils. Once it boils, turn down the heat and cook for 15 minutes or until tender. Drain. Add butter and milk to the potatoes. Turn off the heat. Mash the potatoes using a masher. Stir in the remaining mustard, then season with salt and pepper.

Mix the flour with 2 tablespoons cold water to make a smooth paste, then stir into the meat sauce. Bring the sauce back to a boil, stirring until the sauce thickens. Preheat oven to 350°F.

Spoon the meat sauce into a large baking dish. Dot spoonfuls of mashed potato over the meat sauce. Spread out and swirl the mashed potato with a fork. Bake the pie, uncovered, for 25 minutes, until the potato is golden.