Turkey Shepherd's Pie

It's St. Patrick's Day and you are trying to find something quick, easy, and authentic to make for dinner tonight to celebrate this lovely Irish holiday. But you find yourself so busy working, chasing after the kids, making shamrock sugar cookies, oh and let's not forget the dog. You are so exhausted by the end of the day that you just don't want to cook at all. Well, fear not! Continue celebrating St. Paddy's Day by making a quick and easy Irish cuisine, Turkey Shepherd's Pie. It's yummy, quick, easy, and yes, it's Irish.

When it comes to St. Patrick's Day dinner recipes, there is just so many to choose from. Most of them take a lot of time and preparation to cook. Which no one with their busy schedules, like myself,  has the time to cook long meals or the money to go out. I was brainstorming on what to cook and I quickly thought of a Shepherd's Pie. Now, I have been making this dish most of my life and I usually make it with ground beef. But unfortunately, without the luck of the Irish, I didn't have any ground beef. Traditionally, Shepherd's Pie is made with lamb or some cases ground beef. With the turn of my luck, I found ground turkey in my freezer. Granted, it is not traditional, but it works. It is a great substitute when you are stuck in between a rock and a hard place. So I tried it, and it came out tastier than ever.

Here's the recipe:

Prep time: 5 min Total time: 40 min

Skill: Easy

Serves: Up to 4

1 lb ground turkey

1 tbsp of oil

1 medium onion (diced)

1 cup (1- 2 carrots) or 12 baby carrots (diced)

1 (15 oz) can of sweet peas (drained)

1 tsp of minced garlic

1 tbsp of flour

1 tbsp of butter

2 tsp. of worcestershire 

1 cup of chicken broth

1/2 tsp of onion powder

1/2 tsp of garlic powder

1 sprig of thyme

1 tbsp. of parsley

2 bay leaves

salt and pepper to taste

Instant mashed potatoes

14 oz broiler safe ramekins

The first thing I did was heat up my skillet with 1 tbsp of oil on medium high heat. While my skillet was heating up, I  took my cutting board out and started to dice my onion and carrots. When my skillet was heated up, placed my ground turkey in and browned it for at least 5 minutes. After browning my turkey meat, I poured in my diced onion and carrots and sauteed them down until the onion was translucent and the carrots were tender for about 10 minutes. After sauteing my carrots and onion, I poured in my 1 can of sweet peas (drained), minced garlic, onion powder, garlic powder, 2 tsp. of worcestershire and let that cook for at least 5 minutes. Then after, I poured in 1 tbsp. of butter and flour to thicken. Poured in my 1 cup of chicken broth, 1 sprig of thyme, parsley, 2 bay leaves, and salt and pepper to taste. Covered the skillet with a lid, turned the heat down and let simmer for 10 minutes or until it thickened.

Meanwhile, while my meat mixture was simmering away, I placed my oven rack on the very top and turned on my broiler to high. Grabbed my instant mashed potatoes, I know instant is a sin to most cooks, but when it comes to quick meals, you have no other choice. Followed the box instructions, except for when it calls for water, I used chicken broth for more flavor. Making the mashed potatoes only took 5 minutes. Got out my sheet pan and lined with foil so that any filling drippings wouldn't mess up the pan. One less pan to wash, right? Placed my 14 oz broiler safe ramekins on to the sheet pan. Once my meat mixture was done simmering and my mashed potatoes were done, poured in the mixture 3/4 of the way and top with a thick layer of mashed potatoes. Placed it under the broiler for at least 2-4 minutes or until the tops were browned and toasty. * Be sure to keep an eye on it, it tends to burn quickly.

There you have it, a St. Paddy's Day meal that will make you jig with joy. 

Now take a bite and Enjoy!

Happy St. Patrick's Day!