30 Mar Shepard’s Pie (Low Carb/Paleo)

When I first served this Shepard’s Pie to my kids my daughter (age 5) reacted by immediately turning up her nose while announcing “that looks disgusting!”. My son (age 2) actually started to cry. Tough crowd. Unfortunately (or fortunately in this case) for my kids we have a strict “clean your plate or go to bed hungry” rule in our home which usually results in them at least attempting the dish of the day. My daughter was the first to dig in… After her second bite she was HOOKED and excitedly encouraged her brother to give it a try. He was not far behind in cleaning his own plate. If you’re looking for a new recipe to add to the routine that will sneak some serious veggies into those little bellies, I highly recommend giving this Shepards Pie a try.  Oh, and it also happens to be Paleo, Low Carb and AIP friendly; making it a great one-dish-fits-all option for those with dietary restrictions. I happened to have turnips, mushrooms and a zucchini that needed to be used up so added them all in. Feel free to get creative with any combination of vegetables that you have on hand and if nothing else a bag of frozen peas, carrots and green beans would work just fine!

Ingredients:

• About 3 medium sized carrots
• About 3-4 celery stalks
• 1 medium sized turnip
• 1 medium sized zucchini
• 4 large mushrooms
• About 1/3 cup onion (white or red)
• 2 garlic cloves, diced
• 1 pound ground beef
• About 1 small to medium head cauliflower
• 1.5 tsp sea salt
• 1 tsp fresh Thyme (or about 1/4 tsp dried)
• About 1 tbs ground flaxseed
• Black pepper to taste

Steps:

1. Add cauliflower to steamer basket and cook until very tender (think cooked potatoes consistency)
2. Add beef to skillet and cook until browned
3. Chop all vegetables so they are about the same size
4. When beef is brown stir in chopped veggies, garlic, onion, spices, flaxseed and 1 tsp salt and cook on medium heat until veggies become tender
5. Once cauliflower is tender, toss it in the food processor or blender and blend until it reaches the consistency of mashed potatoes. Salt to taste (about 1/2 tsp)
6. Top veggie/beef mixture with mashed cauliflower
7. Bake at 350 degrees about 15-20 minutes (or broil on high heat until top starts to turn golden brown)