Helen's Homemade Sheperds Pie - Serves 4

Shepherd's pie (or 'cottage pie' it should more properly be called - real 'shepherds pie' is made with lamb!) is one of the all-time favorite 'comfort' foods. On a cold winter's night, nothing is as welcome as a big plate of well made shepherd's pie, with some crusty bread - or at least that's what we believe here at www.helensrecipes.com !. And making it is nowhere near as difficult as you might imagine - in fact, I actually know MEN who can make a passable shepherd's pie! :-). Let's begin with the ingredients.

500g Leaned Beef Mince
1 white and 1 red Onion - diced
Carrot, washed and diced
Portobello Mushroom, 1/2 large diced
Worcester Sauce - few dashes are needed
Ketchup or tomato puree - 1 table spoon
Tabasco sauce - few drops
Stock Cube x 2 Beef in 1pint hot water
Salt & Pepper
Mash Potato for topping - Check out our rustic mash potato recipe!

Fry off the onions in a little sunflower oil until transparent - probably around 8 minutes on a medium gas flame. Once cooked put to one side.
Fry the mince - not all at once - fry off a little at a time seal the meat and gently colour. Once all the mince is cooked put into a shallow saucepan, add the diced mushrooms & carrots (uncooked) plus all the juices from the pan you used for the frying. Add 2 beef stock cubes (dissolved in hot water). Cover and leave to simmer.

Check about 45 minutes into the cooking, and if it has cooked, take it off the heat. Add a little cornflour fixed in water to the mixture to make sure the shepherd's pie has a thick sauce. Put into your ovenproof dish, and ideally leave overnight (this marination will REALLY bring out the flavor!). Once the mixture is cool put your mash potato on top and use a fork to make swirly patterns (this will make the top crispy, it's not just for decoration!).

Finally you need to cook in a pre-heated oven at 220 degrees for at least 45 minutes - check the pie is piping hot before serving. Best served with? Crusty farmhouse bread in chunks, and cool drinks.

About the Author
Helen Porter, famed uber-babe chef, writes exclusively for www.helensrecipes.com