Bam! Comfort food in uncomfortable times

EDITOR’S NOTE: Requesting equal time, so that his wife and newsroom colleague, Mary Therese Biebel, wouldn’t have all the fun, Times Leader staff writer Mark Guydish earlier this week made a shepherd’s pie in the Times Leader test kitchen, which is actually the Biebel/Guydish home kitchen. Could this be the start of a friendly competition between the spouses?

The first shepherd’s pie I really liked came from the kitchens of the Inn at Jim Thorpe (there is a different restaurant there now), which Mary Therese and I often visit as part of our annual “Jim Thorpe walk” from The Tannery (near White Haven) along the Lehigh Gorge Trail. Of course, it may have been so good because we had to walk more than 20 miles to get there.

Long-time readers may have a dim memory of what happened on our first Jim Thorpe walk, which we‘ve try to repeat each year in late autumn since 2000. I proposed to MT as close as possible to the exact minute of her birth 40 years earlier (we tried the inaugural walk as a birthday celebration.)

In a quest to find a satisfying recipe for home, I surfed the web years ago and found this one, credited to Emeril Lagasse, though a new search of his shepherd’s pie concoctions turns up a variation. Cliched as it may sound, this has been such a success with every guest who got a taste that I’ve never searched for an alternative.

Emeril’s secret, as far as I’m concerned, has always been a clever combination of spices and flavors. This single-dish repast seasons the meat (I use ground beef) not only with the usual salt, pepper, onion and garlic. It includes cinnamon, thyme, cloves and Emeril’s Essence (it’s on the web and in some stores; I use a homemade version of the original rather than the Italian essence).

While it’s not all kid friendly, if you use a hand masher that’s one task you can give any youngsters who are ready for a cooking lesson, and if they are old enough maybe let them shred the cheese.

A few tips from my experience: 1) you may want to add a potato if the mash seems too liquid, or add liquid if it seems to stiff; it depends on the size of the spuds and personal preference. 2) I rarely find a recipe that doesn’t benefit from some extra cheese; if you feel the same, keep the grater and cheddar handy until you’re satisfied there’s enough on the top of the taters. 3) Don’t put the casserole in the oven and trust it will take the prescribed 30 minutes. I’ve seen the dish turn golden brown in 20 or so even without taking the last recommended step of finishing with a broiler setting.

Lastly, if you think all shepherd’s pies need gravy, this clearly isn’t for you, though maybe try it anyway. All food is literally a matter of taste, but in our house there is never enough left over for a complete second meal.

SHEPHERD’S PIE

Yield: 6 servings

Ingredients

• 5 tablespoons unsalted butter

• 3 large Idaho potatoes (about 2 pounds), peeled and cut into 1-inch cubes

• 2 teaspoons salt

• ½ cup milk

• ¼ cup heavy cream

• ¼ teaspoon plus ⅛ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

• 1 tablespoon vegetable oil

• 1 cup chopped yellow onion

• 1 teaspoon minced garlic

• 1½ pounds ground lamb or beef

• ¾ teaspoon Emeril’s Italian Essence or other dry Italian seasoning

• ¼ teaspoon dried thyme leaves

•¼ teaspoon ground cinnamon

• Pinch ground cloves

• 1 tablespoon all-purpose flour

• 1 ¼ cups reduced-sodium beef broth

• ¾ cup diced carrots

• ½ cup green peas, fresh or frozen (if frozen, do not thaw)

• 2 teaspoons tomato paste

• ½ cup grated sharp Cheddar cheese

Directions

• Grease a casserole dish with 1 tablespoon of the butter and set aside.

• Position rack in center of oven and preheat the oven to 375°F.

• In a medium saucepan, place the potatoes and 1 teaspoon of the salt. Cover with water by 1 inch and bring to a boil over high heat.

• Reduce the heat and cook at a low boil until fork-tender, about 12 to 15 minutes.

• Using oven mitts or pot holders, drain potatoes in a colander set in the sink and then return them to the saucepan. Add the remaining 4 tablespoons of butter, the milk, heavy cream, ½ teaspoon of the salt, and ⅛ teaspoon of the black pepper. Mash with a potato masher until smooth. Set aside.

• In a large skillet, heat the vegetable oil over medium-high heat. Add the onion and cook, stirring, until soft, about 3 minutes.

• Add the garlic and cook, stirring, for 30 seconds, then add the ground lamb or beef and cook, stirring to break up the meat chunks, until cooked though, about 8 minutes.

• Remove the pan from the heat. Tilt the pan slightly away from you, and with a tablespoon carefully remove as much excess liquid as possible from the pan into a bowl. Discard the liquid.

• Return the skillet to medium-high heat. Add the Italian Essence, thyme, the remaining ½ teaspoon of salt, the remaining ¼ teaspoon of black pepper, the cinnamon, and cloves, and cook until the meat is well browned, stirring frequently, about 6 to 8 minutes.

• Sprinkle the meat with the flour and cook, stirring, for about 1 to 2 minutes.

• Add the beef broth, carrots, peas, and tomato paste, stir to combine, and bring to a boil.

• Reduce the heat to medium-low and simmer until thickened, about 5 to 6 minutes.

• Transfer the mixture to the prepared casserole dish and spoon the mashed potatoes evenly over the top. Sprinkle with the cheese and bake for 30 minutes.

• Increase the oven temperature to broil and cook until golden brown and crisp around the edges, about 4 to 6 minutes.

• Using oven mitts or pot holders, remove the casserole from the oven and let it sit for 10 minutes before serving