Shepherd's Pie

Gluten-Free Gourmet

Holiday Main-Stay

Christmas dinner wouldn't be the same without a hearty home-cooked casserole. Here is a wonderful dish, sure to please all your loved ones coming in for the holidays. Our family enjoyed this recipe for Thanksgiving, but it would be excellent for Christmas or New Years too. Here's the best part: you can prepare both the meat and topping up to 3 days ahead; on the holiday morning, just grab them out of the fridge and throw them into the pan!

To start, brown 1/2 c. chopped onion in 3 T. olive oil, in a large pan on medium-high heat. Add 2 pounds of beef (hamburger, chopped chuck roast, or your favorite cut of meat). Continuing to brown, stir in:

3 T. flour           1 T. fresh ginger, minced               2 garlic cloves, chopped

2 t. ground cloves             2 t. chili powder                    1 c. pitted prunes, chopped

Once the meat is about half browned, stir in 1-2 c. of chicken broth (or water), just covering meat, and simmer on very low for 1-2 hours.

Optional: blanch 10 oz. of pearl onions in boiling water for 2 minutes. Drain, peel, and add to the beef stew. NOTE: We did not do this since we could not find pearl onions at our supermarket. It was fine without, though I imagine it'd be even better with!

Meanwhile, peel 2 pounds of red potatoes and 1 pound of carrots; chop in 2-inch pieces. Place in a pan of water with 2 T. salt and boil til tender. Drain and mash. Then stir in a heated mixture of 1 c. whole milk and 1/4 c. butter. Here is the point at which everything could go into the fridge until Christmas morning.

To assemble the casserole, spoon the stew into a 9x13 glass dish. Cover with the vegetable mash, then sprinkle with 1 1/2 c. grated gouda, gruyere, or sharp cheddar cheese. Bake for 40-50 minutes, or until bubbling and golden. Dish out and enjoy!