Mediterranean Shepard’s Pie

A staple for everyone growing up - Shepard’s Pie or Pâté Chinois (for us Quebecers!) Well here is a grown up version that pairs actually well with wine! 

A layer of veal/porc/beef, a layer of grilled veggies and spinach and a top layer of fluffy Parmigiano Reggiano potatoes......it’s a meatball casserole with a cheesy pillowy top.

What you’ll need:

• 1 1/2 cup of minced veal

• 1 cup of minced porc

• 1 cup of minced beef

• 1 large egg

• 3/4 cup of Italian breadcrumbs (another 1/8 cup for the topping, set aside)

• 1 1/2 pounds of peeled and cubed yellow potatoes

• 1/2 or 1/3 cup of Parmigianno Reggiano (depends your taste)

• 2 tsp of dried parsley

• 1 1/2 tsp of dried basil

• 2 1/2 cups of chicken broth

• 1/8 cup of olive oil ( also a couple tbsp for drizzling vegetables)

• 1/4 cup of balsamic vinegar

• 1 cup of chopped grilled peppers

• 3/4 cups of chopped cherry tomatoes

• 2 cups fresh spinach

• Salt & Pepper to taste

What you’ll do:

Bring to a boil your chicken broth, lower the heat to medium, and add your potatoes. Boil the potatoes untill they are very tender. Remove most of the liquid, except for about 1/4 chicken broth, mash your potatoes until soft. Add the dried basil and Parmigiano Reggiano. Also Salt & pepper to taste - set aside.

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

Preparing your meat. Mix together the minced meats, egg, breadcrumbs, parsley, olive oil, balsamic vinegar, 1/8 cups olive oil,  salt & pepper. When well combined, set aside.

Now the grilled veggie layer. On a grill pan/ bbq or even on a skillet, grill the peppers and the tomatoes. When grilled, add them to a bowl with the spinach. Add the balsamic vinegar, drizzle some olive oil and salt & pepper. Make sure all the spinach is covered with the dressing, and set aside.

In a square 9inch baking dish spray with some baking spray. Add the first layer of the Shepard’s pie, the meat, evenly. The second layer is the vegetables mixture, and then the third will be the potatoes. 

Lastly sprinkle the remaining breadcrumbs. Bake the Shepard’s pie for 30-40 mins untill golden brown and the meat is cooked through.

Sprinkle some more Parmigiano if you’d like and Let stand for 5-10 mins before serving!

This is the type of Shepard’s pie that doesn’t need ketchup just some Pinot Grigio ! :-) Enjoy!!