English Cottage-shepherd's Pie With Herbs

Total Time: 1 hr Preparation Time: 15 mins Cook Time: 45 mins

Ingredients

• 1 lb lean ground beef
• 1 large onion, diced
• 12 ounces fresh mushrooms, sliced
• 16 ounces frozen peas and carrots (or cooked fresh carrot slices)
• 6 cups prepared instant mashed potatoes (or leftover mashed potatoes)
• 1 ounce herb & beef gravy mix (1 packet mccormick herb & mushroom gravy mix)
• 1/8 teaspoon rosemary
• 1/4 teaspoon thyme
• 1 1/4 cups water or 1 1/4 cups dry red wine
• 1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
• 1 cup shredded sharp cheddar cheese
• 1 large tomato, sliced

Recipe

• 1 preheat oven to 350 degrees f.
• 2 in a medium saucepan, cook ground beef and onion over medium-high heat until beef is very well browned, about 10-15 minutes. stir in the sliced mushrooms and package of frozen peas & carrots. stir well and heat through.
• 3 to the meat mixture, add the gravy packet and 1 1/4 cups water or dry red wine, the rosemary & thyme, and the black pepper. stir well to combine. bring mixture to the boil over medium-high heat. boil and stir for 2-3 minutes (gravy mixture will thicken when cool).
• 4 turn beef mixture into a greased large and deep casserole dish (i use the crock liner of my 4 quart crock pot). top with potatoes, cheese and tomato slices.
• 5 cover and bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes. uncover, and cook an additional 10-15 minutes, until hot and bubbly.
• 6 serve with parmesan cheese for topping at the table, along with a glass of cider or ale (we like guinness extra stout), if desired!
• 7 note: to freeze, omit the cheese and tomato. do not bake. to cook, defrost in refrigerator overnight, add cheese and tomato, and bake as directed, adding about 20 minutes to the baking time to compensate for the chilled food.