Cottage Pie

Cottage pie is mid winter comfort food for me and a great way to use up carrots. It always looks so tasty when you take it out of the oven and it's all golden on top. I love the Worcestershire sauce because it makes the mince taste like the mince my grandma used to make my sister and I when we were little.

Recipe

• 800g potato, peeled and cubed
• Cooking spray
• 1 onion, chopped finely
• 500g extra lean beef mince
• 2 medium carrots, chopped finely
• A beef stock cube or stock pot
• 1 tablespoon of gravy granules
• 1 tablespoon of tomato puree/paste
• 2 tablespoons of Worcestershire sauce
• Fresh thyme from 3 sprig, whole (or 1/2 teaspoon dried)
• 1 teaspoon margarine
• 3 tablespoons of semi skimmed milk
• Salt and pepper

1. Preheat oven to 200C.
2. Boil a large pot of water on the hob for the potatoes and add 2 teaspoons of salt. Add potatoes and cook until they are soft when you poke them with a fork. Drain potatoes.
3. Put a large saucepan on the hob on medium and spray with cooking spray. When the saucepan is hot and the cooking spray has melted, add mince and onions to the saucepan and cook with the lid off until the mince has browned. Drain off any fat in the pan.
4. Add carrots and cook for about five minutes until vegetables start to soften.
5. Dissolve the beef stock cube in 450ml of hot water and stir in the gravy granules.
6. Stir in the stock, tomato puree and Worcestershire sauce. If using fresh thyme, put it whole on the top of the mixture. If using dried thyme, add it to the mince mixture. Simmer partially covered for 30 minutes, or until the stock has thickened and reduced. Remove thyme and season with salt and pepper.
7. Put potatoes, margarine and milk into a bowl and mash until smooth. Add a little more milk if the mash is too dry, it should be easy to spread with a spoon. Season with salt and pepper.
8. Put the mince mixture into an oven proof casserole dish and top with mashed potato. It's easiest if you start in the middle and work your way out. Try not to leave any gaps.
9. Cook for 40 minutes in the oven and then serve. If the top starts to burn, cover with foil until the last 15 minutes.

Serves 6
7 weight watchers pro points per serving
0 servings of fruit and veg

Interesting alternatives

Sweet potato mash
Creamed horse radish in the mash
Red or white wine in the mince, add with stock
1 tablespoon of red currant jelly, add with stock
Lentils with the mince
Parsley with the mash
Egg yolks in the mashed potato
Parsnips in the mash

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