I'm on maternity leave for the next few months. Unfortunately, we are still waiting for the car seat adapter to come for our stroller, so that I can use it for someone Josie's size---TINY. Until it gets here, Josie and I are stuck in the house. So we sat around listening to Neil Diamond, singing as loud as we could. Then we popped these sheperd's pies in the oven and, BOOM, lunch was served. Hand held shepherd's pies. Brilliant idea. Made by my friend Sangeetha, not me. Don't be foolish, I haven't cooked in ages.
I can't believe how wonderful my life is right now. I don't even have to cook lunch. My friends just drop off food. I reheat it and eat it. Then I go back to listening to Neil Diamond.
Not a bad way to spend an afternoon. Of course, we would both like to venture outside soon. The trees, one of the nicest features in my wooded neighborhood, are turning colors. Bob Ross would be pleased.
Sangeetha was nice enough to share the recipe. You can freeze the pies and take them to work for lunch.
Cracklin' Josie
____________________________________________________________
Shepherd’s Pie Pockets By Sangeetha
Makes 9
Filling adapted from Danny Boome on FoodNetwork.com
Read recipe through first, as there are several components and ingredients lists.
Beef Mixture
Ingredients
1lb ground beef
2 carrots, peeled and diced
1 stalk celery, diced
1 clove garlic, minced
1T tomato paste
1T olive oil
1T Worcestershire sauce
¾ C peas
Sprig of thyme if you have it
Salt and pepper to taste
Directions
Heat skillet on medium heat. Add olive oil and sauté onions, garlic, celery and carrots until softened. Mix in tomato paste and add thyme, if using. Add ground beef. Break up the beef and cook until it’s no longer pink. Add Worcester sauce. Add frozen peas and cook for another couple of minutes for the peas to defrost. Taste for salt and pepper. Remove the thyme sprig before assembling the pockets. If you like a little kick, add a dash of chili flakes to it.
Mashed potatoes
Use any mashed potatoes recipe you like. I like mine simple. Potatoes, butter, cream and salt. You’ll need about five potatoes for this.
Ingredients For the Dough
4C all-purpose flour
3T olive oil +1 tsp for the end.
½ tsp salt
1tsp baking powder
1C water
Directions
Add flour, oil, salt and baking powder and knead until a little crumbly. Add half a cup of water and knead again. Keep adding water in small increments until the dough comes together in a nice elastic ball. Add a tsp of olive oil at the end and rub over the dough. This will get rid of all stickiness.
Portion out dough into balls the size of tennis balls.
Roll out each portion into a 7-inch circle.
To assemble and bake
1 egg, beaten with 1T water
Preheat oven to 350°.
Take the rolled dough and add 3T of meat filling in the center of the dough. Top the filling with 2T of mashed potatoes. Try and form the meat and potatoes in a rectangle on the dough.
Take both sides of the dough and bring together with a half-inch overlap. Press down. Then take the top and bottom of the dough and bring towards the center, sealing the pocket.
Place the pocket seam-side down on a baking sheet. Once you’ve assembled all the pockets, lightly score the tops to let any steam escape. Brush with egg wash and bake for 30 minutes until the tops are golden brown.
Serve hot or at room temperature with ketchup.
