3mediumcarrots - peeled, halved and quartered lengthwise, and sliced ½-inch thick (they should look like quarter moons, dude)
2stalkscelery - sliced ½-inch thick
4clovesgarlic - pressed or minced
1teaspoonsalt
1teaspoonground black pepper
2tablespoonstomato paste
2poundsground beef (minced beef) - or lamb (I use only beef)
3tablespoonsWorcestershire sauce
½cupbeef stock (beef broth or beef bouillon)
1cuppeas - frozen or fresh
TO MAKE THE MASHED POTATOES:
4poundspotatoes - peeled and cubed into 1-inch chunks
3tablespoonsmargarine or butter
1pinchsalt - to taste
1pinchground black pepper - to taste
¼cupmilk - what you choose depends on your level of indulgence
1cupcheddar cheese
Instructions
TO MAKE THE CLASSIC COTTAGE PIE:
Preheat the oven to 400°F.
In a large non-stick skillet, heat the oil and butter over medium-high heat and add the onions, carrots, celery, and garlic. Cook this for 10 to 12 minutes until they start to brown.
Add in the tomato paste and mix it all together well.
Add the ground beef (or lamb), crumble it as you add it, and cook it for another 10 to 12 minutes until it’s not pink anymore.
Next, add the Worcestershire sauce and the broth. Get this to a simmer and let it cook for another 10 minutes. Mix in the peas at this point.
TO MAKE THE MASHED POTATOES:
Get a pot of salted water boiling well, add the potatoes, and get them mashable, about 15 to 20 minutes (to check, take a chunk of potato out of the water, and a fork should split it apart easily, leaving crumbs and residue on the fork).
Drain the potatoes and add the rest of the ingredients. Use a masher or electric mixer to get them fluffed. Important! You want these taters to be firm rather than soft because you will want to shape them into peaks on top of the Cottage Pie.
ASSEMBLY:
Get a 9x 13-inch baking dish (or something equivalent or whatever you have in terms of baking dishes… that’s what the Irish would do), spoon in the beef mixture, and make it an even layer.
Now spoon on the mashed potatoes, and do it like you’re frosting a cake, or you will mix up the beef melange with it too much. In other words, spoon dabs of it all over and then gently spread it out until you’ve used all of the mashed pots.
This is the fun part. Take a fork and run it all over the potatoes to give them texture. Make peaks and stuff like that so it will crisp up.
Stick this in the oven for 20 minutes. In the last 3 minutes, turn on the broiler and get the top even crispier. Be careful not to burn it, so glue yourself to the oven window and watch it until you get that tingly sensation in your nether regions. This is what I took out this evening:
To serve this, take a big ol’ serving spoon and dig to the bottom and try to lift it out like a pie. It’s supposed to be a bit of a pile, so don’t get OCD about it, Cake Boss.
You can serve this with green beans or a veggie, of course, but this is pretty filling on its own. Believe it or not, if you notice the recipe, it’s not that bad for you, either… just don’t eat half of it in one sitting.