Simple & Easy Recipe: Shepard's Pie

The weather is getting colder, and when it gets cold we all feel like something to warm our souls. Something cheesy, meaty and hot. That’s what makes a Shepard’s Pie a winner. It’s simple to make and it tastes delicious.

After lots of researching and experimenting, our daughter Chloe put this dish together and decided to make it with our Pinnacle Shiraz. When asked why she used the Pinnacle Shiraz:

‘A great excuse to open up a bottle of my favourite gold medal winner’ - Chloe

Ingredients

For filling

1 kilogram of beef mince

1 medium carrot

1 onion

Olive oil

1 tbsp minced garlic (optional)

2 tbsp mixed herbs (or rosemary & thyme)

1 bay leaf (optional)

Salt & pepper

2 tbsp tomato paste

1 tbsp of Worcestershire

1 cup of beef stock

1 cup of red wine (optional, but delicious)

3/4 cup of frozen peas and corn

1 tbsp of corn starch

For mashed potato topping

3-4 large potatoes

Milk

Butter

Salt

A few handfuls of shredded cheese

Method

1.) Preheat oven to 180 degrees celsius (fan forced). Boil potatoes in water with a pinch of salt. For quicker cooking time, quarter the potatoes. For more flavour, but a longer cooking time, boil the potatoes whole. Cooking time will vary, but boil until soft enough to mash.

2.) Cut carrot and onion to approximately the same size and then cook in a pan for 10 minutes on a medium heat (or until onion is softened and translucent). Add garlic mince, tomato paste and herbs and stir for a further minute.

2.) Add beef mince to the pan and cook until brown. Add red wine, stock, Worcestershire, bay lead and season with salt and pepper. Add frozen vegetables. Mix well and bring to the boil and then reduce to a simmer. Simmer for 30 minutes, stirring occasionally. If the mixture starts to dry out, add some more beef stock.

3.) While beef mince is simmering, make the mashed potatoes. Add milk, salt, butter to potatoes and mash. Add as much of these ingredients as you desire. For creamier potatoes, blend everything together with a stick blender.

4.) After the mince has finished simmering, add to a 1.5L ceramic or metal dish and then top with the mash. Spread it out gently, and even try to add some cool patterns in it with your spatula or a fork. Top the mash with the shredded cheese and then cook for 20-30minutes or until the cheese is golden and the filling is bubbling on the sides. HOT TIP: make sure to place the dish onto a tray so that if the filling bubbles over, you won’t have it bake onto your oven.

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If you try this, make sure to tag us @cappastonewines when you post it on your Instagram story or leave us a comment below to tell us how it went.