FLOWER POT KITCHEN: SHEPARD'S PIE

31 Mar 2013

SHEPARD'S PIE

WONDERFULLY COMFORTING SHEPARD'S PIE

INGREDIENTS

(serves 6)

500g lamb mince

500g beef mince

1 onion fine diced

1 chilli

1 celery stick fine diced

1 carrot fine diced

1 glug of ooil

1 tbsp tomato puree

1 tin of chopped tomatoes

1 tin of baked beans or canellini beans

200ml red wine

200ml lamb stock

2 sprigs of fresh oregano

salt and pepper

1 pinch cayenne pepper

1 pack of butter for the mashed potato

2kg King Edward potatoes mashed & seasoned

100g grated Parmesan or cheddar to finish off the mashed potato

Pan fry the onion, garlic, chilli, carrot & celery in the ooil for ten minutes until soft but not coloured, add the mince and brown off, add the red wine and reduce, add the stock, tomato and puree, beans and seasoning, simmer until you have a medium consistency, I like my shepards pie to be loose so that the sauce bubbles up and oozes out of any gaps in the mashed potato topping which then gets all crispy and caramelises in the oven adding some of the best chewy fluffy bites of potato and cheese.

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LIFE MY PASSION

Welcome to my daily life of cooking, one winters day many years ago my family and I were all inspired by a back to back rainy day of River Cottage this got us to stop talking about and start actually doing, suddenly three weeks later eight vegetable beds were dug, greenhouse erected and our first vegetables were propagating, this was the start to raising and growing our own food, our fabulous son Oscar changed our path in life which lead us to sell our small thriving restaurant of 10 yrs and to start our new life (Terrifying!) a life of the self sufficient in touch with nature and seasons, taking a step back and looking forward to a slower change of pace and making the most of every moment.

My passion for cooking was stronger than ever and having time at home with Oscar I found I had a new direction and I was no longer striving for perfection, I was suddenly very passionate for the enjoyment of the other side of food, something I had not realised, being the Chef/Cook and every other duty of your own small restaurant made me see that I never actually took time to cook what I wanted!

So there I was muddy boots and hands digging deep in more than one sense and I found myself transported back in time to where everyone grew some of their own food, it is a wonderful world with a real sense of achievement and loss, Slugs Snails and Caterpillars! But thats another story! Childhood memories of summers when I lived with my grand parents reminded me of so much that I had learnt about the make do and mend generation that I had forgotten.

Now as a family we love our free wild food days where we gather what nature has provided, have gone from being mini mini garden urban small holders, who did raised pigs at home because we could not wait to find land and supporting ourselves from our garden to now owning a very small farm that allows us to grow more vegetables for the whole of our family and neighbours, raise our own gorgeous Gloucestershire Old Spot pigs, (Sausages!) and pets! Dorset Down sheep, chickens for eggs and pet goats! Suddenly having large quantities of produce started to wake up the Cook in me!

The Cook was awake that part of me that wants to cook for the masses and I found myself setting up Flowerpot Kitchen, a Farmers Market Stall, I wanted to use our honest raised meats and make old fashioned pork pies, rabbit pies and game pies from the local game keeper along with old fashioned techniques and the best hot water crust pastry. This in turn grew to a small cottage industry from home weekly supplying three farm shops and a deli along with also attending three farmers markets A few years later there came a time when my son Oscar's health changed and it was an easy decision to stop.

I still hold the occasional pop up 40 seater restaurant or gourmet lunch which we do for local charities for the love of sharing food and to remind that Cook in me why I love our go slower self sufficient life!

So here I am sitting amoung the vegetables watching the chickens loving that every season nature teaches me something new and that nature is in charge! She has taught me to just go with it and grow. Give it a try from a tray of salad on your windowsill to a few tomato plants it all counts.