Cottage Pie

Lately I've been craving comfort food.  Things like lasagna, meat and potatoes, and basically anything casserole like.  I made one of my Make Ahead Crockpot Meals with mashed potatoes (which I have been craving like crazy) last week, and had a ton of left over potatoes.  I love Shepard's Pie, but don't like all the work it takes, so figured I'd use up my leftover mashed potatoes by making this dish.

I did some searching around on Pinterest for a recipe, but ultimately ended up going to the bible of cook books, the Joy of Cooking.  I love this cook book and think it is one everyone should have in their kitchen.  It has everything from how to do table place settings, to etiquette on how to serve courses, to ways to prep different cuts of meet and veggies, as well as a ton of great recipes.  It was from the Joy that I learned that what I was about to make (with some variations and additions of my own) was actually called Cottage Pie, since I was not using lamb as the meat in the dish.  So here it is, my version of Cottage Pie:

Big Red's Cottage Pie

•  3 Tbsp. olive or vegetable oil
• 1 medium onion, chopped
• 6 cloves garlic (I'm a garlic lover, so you can definitely use less)
• 1 green bell pepper, chopped (I used frozen, chopped peppers from my garden)
• 1 can corn, drained
• 1 lb. ground elk, beef, deer, moose, etc.
• 1 Tbsp. flour
• 3/4 c. beef or vegetable broth
• 1 tsp. dried thyme
• 1 tsp. dried rosemary
• 1/8 tsp. (pinch) of nutmeg
• 1 Tbsp. Worcestershire sauce
• 2 Tbsp. A1 sauce
• 2 Tbsp. cold butter, cut into small pieces

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.
2. Heat a large skillet over medium heat and add olive oil.  
3. Add onions, pepper, and garlic and cook until soft, about 10 min.
4. Add ground meat and cook until browned.
5. Add canned corn and flour and cook for about 3 minutes. 
6. Add beef broth, thyme, rosemary, nutmeg, Worcestershire sauce, and A1 sauce.  Stir to combine.
7. Reduce heat to low and simmer, stirring occasionally, until thickened, about 5 min.
8. Let cool slightly and move to a large pie plate or small casserole dish.
9. Spread the mashed potatoes over the top.
10. Scatter the butter pieces over the top of the potatoes.
11. Bake until the potatoes are browned and the dish is heated all the way through, about 30-35 min.

Note: The original recipe calls for onions, carrots, and celery as the three vegetables to use in the dish.  I often see peas as a substitute for the celery.  You could also just use 1 - 1 1/2 c. frozen mixed vegetables.  Basically, just pick the three veggies that sound best to you, and go for it. :)