Shepherd's Pie

I went to the Cheesecake Factory for the first time this November, and was overwhelmed by the choices of different food they had in their menu! The food ranged from light salads to rich creamy pastas! But, there was one item that grabbed my interest - "shepherd's pie".

I have never eaten shepherd's pie before, and I thought that eating it from this restaurant will not disappoint me - and I was right! That meal was probably one of the best meals that I have eaten in a long time!

Therefore, to commemorate my love for shepherd's pie, I have decided to make a version of it myself! By recalling all of the ingredients that I could see and taste from my plate, I managed to make a similar recipe to cheesecake factory's. Here it is...

[Serves 4]

Ingredients:

For the meat base:

230 g ground beef

170 g mushrooms, sliced

1/2 onion, chopped

1 small carrot, julienned

1/2 cup green peas

1 medium zucchini, julienned

1 garlic clove, minced

1 Tbs Olive oil

1 Tbs flour

1 Tbs tomato paste

1 Tbs butter

1 Tbs Worcestershire sauce

1 cup beef broth

1/8 cup white grape juice

1/8 cup balsamic vinegar

1 tsp thyme

Salt and pepper to taste

For the mashed potatoes topping:

3 yellow potatoes, diced

2 Tbs butter

1/2 egg

1/4 cups heavy cream

1 Tbs parmesan cheese, grated

Prepare the ingredients on the countertop - you do not want to be running around the kitchen like a headless chicken whilst cooking this meal! (Trust me).

Mix the 1 cup beef broth, 1/8 cup white grape juice, and 1/8 cup balsamic vinegar - set it aside to be used for later

In order to julienne the carrot and zucchini, simply follow instructions as stated on this video tutorial.

Heat the olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add in the sliced mushrooms, and sauté them until soft and brown. Add 1/2 cup of the balsamic vinegar mixture to the hot pan. Constantly, stir and scrape the pan. Remove the mushrooms to a plate.

Turn the heat down to about medium heat. Sauté the carrots until they begin to soften, then add onion and garlic until the garlic is aromatic.

When the onions turns soft, add the ground beed and cook until brown, breaking the meat into large chunks rather than small pieces.

Once the ground beef is browned, season it with salt, pepper and thyme. Add the cooked mushrooms, peas and 1 tbsp butter. Mix the ingredients once then sprinkle with the 1 Tbs of flour. Stir constantly to avoid having the flour stuck to the surface of the pan. Then add the tomato paste, Worcestershire sauce, and remaining balsamic vinegar mixture.

Cook and stir the mixture for several minutes, adding salt and pepper according to your likings. Add in the stock and simmer until the sauce is thick and somewhat reduced.

Meanwhile, prepare the mashed potato topping by boiling 3 yellow potatoes. Drain, and place them in a pot under low heat. Add the butter and cream, and mash the potatoes using a fork. Mash until there are no large lumps of potatoes. Season it with salt and pepper.

Preheat the oven to 200°C and prepare a casserole dish by coating it with butter. Remove the meat mixture from the heat and stir in the zucchini. Then, gently pour the mixture into the buttered dish.

Spoon the mashed potatoes over the meat and spread it so that the top is smooth, glaze it with 1/2 a beaten egg and sprinkle it with grated parmesan cheese.