Kicked Up Sheppard's Pie

It is no secret, this year we have gotten a huge crop of very tasty local and organic potatoes from Wayward Seed. It is also no secret that I have gone mostly grain free.

I also am the first to admit, that I do not love potatoes.

So I am learning to love them and last Saturday, I boiled and mashed a huge amount of potatoes. I did not peel them. The good stuff is in the peel. I boiled, I drained and I mashed them with some butter and half and half.

I thought about freezing them this way, but decided better of it and made up a version of Sheppard's pie instead.

I basically made a version of keema. I used the spice combo from this keema recipe which I swear by. It is a process, but in this case I let the mustard seed and cumin seeds pop. Caramelize the onions and then I toss in some garlic and ginger paste. Then the spices, then brown the meat. I added cubed carrots to the onion mixture half through.

Once the meat is brown, I added some lactose free plain yogurt and cooked until thick. I would have added pea, but H does not like peas in casseroles. No idea why, he just doesn't.

I made the spice blend a bit milder than I normally would in the hopes the kids would eat this.

At this point. I filled four casserole dishes with the meat mixture.

 I used two small round casserole pans and two larger square pans.

 I used my large scoop, to portion out the potatoes. So the potato layer would be even.

Then I used a back of a spoon to smooth out the potatoes. I put the dishes in the freezer uncovered to freeze firm, then I wrapped the tops in foil and put the pan in a gallon sized freezer bag.

Yesterday I thawed one for about an hour and baked it at 350 degrees for just over and hour. H swears he could have eaten the entire thing. L was not impressed. E thought it was "amazing" and I liked it.

It was nice to have something already made and ready to bake.