Shepherd's Pie with Directions for Freezing | UNL FoodShare on Pinterest

Step 1

Wash hands with soap and water.

Step 2

Peel and quarter potatoes, cutting into even chunks. Place in a large sauce pan; add enough cold water to cover by 1 inch. Salt water, if desired. Cover pan, bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer, uncovered, 20-25 minutes or until fork tender.

Step 3

Heat a large skillet over medium heat. Add the ground beef and chopped onion. Stir often to crumble, until cooked through and temperature reaches 160°F on a food thermometer. Drain fat.

Step 4

Stir vegetables and gravy into meat. Spoon into a 9-inch square pan or 2 8-inch pie pans.

Step 5

Remove cooked potatoes from saucepan and drain in a colander. Return potatoes to pan; heat gently on stovetop on low heat for about a minute to further dry potatoes.

Step 6

Mash potatoes in pan with a potato masher or remove potatoes and add them back by passing them through a potato ricer.

Step 7

Mix in cream cheese, ½ of the shredded cheese and the garlic. Add a little hot milk if the potato mixture appears too thick.

Step 8

Cover meat mixture with potato mixture. Sprinkle with remaining ½ cup shredded cheese. If freezing Shepherd's Pie, skip to Prep, Freeze and Bake section.

Step 9

Preheat oven to 375 °F. Bake 20 minutes or until heated through (165 °F as measured by a food thermometer) and potatoes begin to brown.