When I received my copy of The Ancestral Table from my friend Russ Crandall, the beautiful photography and rich, hearty meals really enticed me. Shepherd’s Pie has always been a favorite dish of mine, so this recipe was definitely something I was thinking my whole family would love to try. Russ generously let me post his recipe on my site to share with my readers. If you are trying to eat a real food diet, this book is a great resource. The Shepherd’s Pie was seasoned well, the potatoes were fluffy and made a nice crunch when browned. I usually use lamb when making it, but tried it with beef this time and really loved the results. It’s a warm, home-style comfort dish that I’m sure you’ll love!
Buy your copy here!
The Ancestral Table: Traditional Recipes for a Paleo Lifestyle
Although meat pies have been eaten in the British Isles since the Middle Ages, shepherd’s pie as we know it today coincided with the arrival of the potato in Europe in the 16th century—although potatoes didn’t catch on in Great Britain until the 18th century. Shepherd’s pie appeared shortly thereafter, though under its original name, cottage pie, and made mostly with beef. The name shepherd’s pie followed about 100 years later, along with the idea that it should be made with mutton. Today, shepherd’s pie can be made with beef or lamb, or sometimes both, while cottage pie usually refers only to the beef version of the dish.
Another interesting fact about this dish is that it’s prevalent in many other cultures with some pretty amusing names, like French Canada’s pâté chinois (“Chinese pie”), Russia’s картофельная запеканка (“potato baked pudding”), and Brazil’s escondidinho (“hidden”).
- 2 LBS. RUSSET OR YUKON GOLD POTATOES, PEELED AND CUT INTO 1" CHUNKS
- 3 TBSP. BUTTER, DIVIDED
- ~1/2 CUP HEAVY CREAM
- 1½ TSP. SEA SALT, DIVIDED
- 2 TSP. BLACK PEPPER, DIVIDED
- 1½ LBS. GROUND BEEF, GROUND LAMB, OR A MIXTURE
- 1 SMALL ONION, FINELY CHOPPED
- 1 MEDIUM CARROT, DICED
- 1 CELERY ROOT, PEELED AND DICED
- 1 TBSP. TOMATO PASTE
- 2 CLOVES GARLIC, MINCED
- ½ CUP CHICKEN BROTH (PAGE 42)
- 1 TSP. WORCESTERSHIRE SAUCE
- 1 SMALL HANDFUL FRESH THYME, MINCED (ABOUT 1 TSP.)
- 1 SMALL HANDFUL FRESH ROSEMARY, MINCED (ABOUT 1 TSP.)
- ½ CUP FROZEN PEAS
- Place the potatoes in a large stockpot and fill with enough water to cover the potatoes by 1". Bring to a boil, reduce the heat to medium, and simmer until fork-tender, about 15 minutes. Drain well, then return to the pot and add 2 Tbsp. of the butter. Mash until smooth and firm, adding cream as needed, up to ½ cup. Season with salt and pepper to taste (about 1 tsp. each), then set aside.
- In a cast-iron skillet, brown the ground meat on medium heat until most of the pink is cooked out, about 6 minutes. Drain and set aside the rendered fat, then set aside the cooked meat. Return 2 Tbsp. of the rendered fat to the pan, as well as the remaining 1 Tbsp. butter, and warm it on medium heat until melted. Add the onion, carrot, and celery root and sauté until softened, about 8 minutes.
- Add the tomato paste and garlic and sauté for another 2 minutes. Add the chicken broth, Worcestershire sauce, herbs, and more salt and pepper to taste (about ½ tsp. salt and 1 tsp. pepper). Simmer until slightly thickened, about 3 minutes. Remove from the heat and stir in the ground meat and frozen peas.
- Preheat the oven to 450°F. Spread the meat mixture evenly in the skillet, then top the meat mixture with globs of mashed potatoes. Spread with a spatula or fork. Bake until the potatoes are browned, about 30 minutes. Let rest for 5 minutes before serving.
The leftovers made for a pretty lunch the next day.
22 thoughts on “Shepherd’s Pie: The Ancestral Table”
I would love to add this to my collection. Sounds great
From your feedback as well as Stacy’s, I’m thinking Russ’s recipes sound awesome! This pie looks delicious and nourishing. I just made Diane’s from the 21DSD book, but now I think I’ll need to make this one too! Thanks.
This book looks amazing. Shepherds pie reminds me go my homeland so I am very excited to try this.
I’m really excited about this book! And I’m glad you’re doing this giveaway- because I really like your site- I’m very interested in the intersection between the paleo lifestyle and sustainability. Keep up the good work! I liked on on Facebook, and followed you on Twitter (@wendolpho).
I like you and follow you, and can’t wait to win the book! It looks amazing.
I would love to add this book to my paleo cookbook collection!
Thanks for the giveaway! I followed you on Twitter and liked you on Facebook!
Hoping I win!
Liked and followed! Thank you!
Thanks for the review. It looks like a great book!
I love, love, LOVE shepherd’s pie! I try to keep pretty strict paleo so I made this recipe with a few substitutions…I made a roasted garlic cauliflower puree with ghee and unsweetened almond milk to top instead of the potatoes. And although I believe peas are generally a decent legume to consume, I substituted green pepper for the peas. I did use Lea & Perrin’s Worcestershire sauce as it contains natural ingredients and minimal sugar. It was delish and will definitely be a standard in our dinner rotation. Thanks for sharing!
I already like you on FB and follow you on Twitter. What’s not to like? I know I’d sure like a new cookbook, please!
I have followed you on twitter and liked your page. Thank you for the giveaway!
I love Shepherd’s Pie and have been making it for years but this recipes sounds so much better. Thank you for the great recipe. I will be trying it out on my family in the very near future and have pinned it to Pinterest. I would love to own the book: The Ancestral Table. I “Like” you on FB and follow you on Twitter.
I follow you on twitter as birdiebee52 and “Like” you on Facebook. Thanks for the great recipe. I have pinned this to try out on my family.
Followed you on Twitter and Facebook, would LOVE to win this cookbook, I love the domestic man blog and make his recipes ALL the time! He’s probably 90% responsible for me having an easy transition into the Paleo lifestyle!
I made this tonight and everyone really liked it. I added some cheddar and Romano cheese to the mashed potatoes before putting it in the 450 degree oven. This one will be a regular.
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Hi Diana,
Please review this recipe. It appears to be fried cauliflower rice, not shepherd’s pie
Thank you – it’s been updated now. It must have gotten mixed up when I updated to the new site. I appreciate the catch!
What is this “leftovers” you mention? We don’t seem to have any in our house.
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