Shepherd's Pie

The man of this house is always asking for shepherd's pie, but since I'm not a huge fan of the dish, he only gets it at Irish restaurants.  This year I decided to surprise him for St. Patrick's Day and went to work finding a good recipe. I thought it would be fun to make this in individual ramekins. If you do the same it should fill about eight of them depending on size.

Garlic-Potato Topping:

*4 large russett potatoes

*10 cloves garlic, peeled

*1/2 c. sour cream

*1/4-1/2 c. beef broth

*4 TBSP. butter, softened

*1/2 tsp. salt

*1/2 tsp. fresh ground pepper

Filling:

*4 slices bacon, cut into thin strips

*1 TBSP. vegetable oil (I didn't use this)

*2 medium onions, chopped

*1/2 tsp. salt

*1 tsp. sugar

*1 lb. ground beef (I know, true shepherd's pie is made with lamb, but the recipe called for beef and I had beef)

*2-3 medium carrots, rough chopped

*2 garlic cloves, minced

*2 TBSP. tomato paste

*1 TBSP. flour

*12 oz. beer

*1/2 c. beef broth

*1 tsp. finely chopped fresh rosemary leaves

*1/2 tsp. fresh ground pepper

*3/4 c. frozen peas

*1/2 c. grated cheddar cheese

Preheat oven to 350 and spray 10-inch round baking dish, or ramekins, with cooking spray.

Heat a skillet over medium heat and cook bacon until crisp, 5-7 minutes. With a slotted spoon, transfer bacon to a paper towel and set aside.

Add onions and 1/2 tsp. salt to bacon drippings in skillet and cook, stirring occasionally, until onions are soft and just beginning to brown, about 10 minutes. Sprinkle in sugar and cook until onions begin to caramelize.  Stir in the beef and cook on medium-high heat until beef begins to brown (Carlee often uses leftover roast beef here).  Add carrots and garlic and cook until carrots begin to soften, about 5 minutes. Stir in tomato paste and flour and cook another 2 minutes.  Add beer, bring to a boil for 3 minutes.  Cook an additional 2 minutes, stirring often with a wooden spoon to scrape up bits from bottom of pan.  Add bacon, broth, rosemary, salt, pepper and peas and simmer until sauce thickens about 10-15 minutes.

Meanwhile, in a large saucepan, add potatoes and garlic, cover with cold water.  Bring to a boil over medium heat and cook, uncovered, until fork-tender (15-20 min). Drain. Transfer to a large bowl (or use a potato ricer).  Add sour cream, butter, 1/4 c. broth, salt and pepper, and mix with mixer until light and fluffy, about 1-2 minutes. If mixture is too dry, add remaining 1/4 c. broth. Cover and set aside.

Spoon meat mixture into prepared dishes and spread potato mixture evenly over top.  Bake until the filling is hot and topping is lightly browned and the edges are bubbly, about 35 minutes.  Remove from oven, sprinkle with cheese, and return to the oven for another 10 minutes. Let rest 10 minutes before serving.