Shepherd's Pie (crock Pot)

Total Time: 6 hrs 50 mins Preparation Time: 20 mins Cook Time: 6 hrs 30 mins

Ingredients

• 3 -4 cups leftover mashed potatoes
• 1 1/2-2 lbs ground beef
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 large onion, chopped finely
• 1/2 cup celery, chopped
• 1 -2 carrot, shredded
• 1/2 cup corn (fresh, frozen or canned)
• 1/2 cup sweet peas (fresh, frozen or canned)
• 1 (6 ounce) can tomato paste
• 6 ounces water
• 1 teaspoon sea salt
• 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
• 1/4 teaspoon paprika (sprinkle on top of mashed potatoes for garnish)
• chopped fresh parsley, for garnish
• nonstick cooking spray

Recipe

• 1 brown the meat with the onion, garlic, celery and carrots until ground beef is no longer pink; drain any fat.
• 2 mix corn, sweet peas, salt, black pepper, tomato paste and water (fill up the 6 oz tomato paste can for measurement) into the meat mixture; stir well.
• 3 spray the inside of the crockpot with non-stick cooking spray; pour meat mixture into the bottom of crockpot; press into the bottom of the crockpot so it is dense and even.
• 4 spread leftover mashed potatoes (evenly) over the meat mixture.
• 5 sprinkle the mashed potatoes with paprika (optional, for garnish).
• 6 cook on low 6 hours (high 3 hours); then, remove the lid for 30 minutes to allow the potatoes to brown.
• 7 sprinkle pie with fresh, chopped parsley (optional, for garnish).
• 8 variation 1: cheesy shepherd's pie--add 2 cups of shredded cheddar cheese to the pie by pressing the cheese over the meat mixture, and then layering the mashed potatoes on top of the cheese; cook same length, same way.
• 9 variation 2: runza/cabbage shepherd's pie--substitute shredded cabbage (2 cups) for the peas and corn; cook same length, same way.