Cold winter days require comfort food, and today....today requires comfort, so while I might not be making this for myself this evening, this totally ticks all the boxes for a perfect winter Mom Food dinner. I'm thinking anything that requires mashed potatoes automatically qualifies as Mom Food.
The fact that this recipe calls for white cheddar and Yukon gold potatoes just takes that up a notch for those with, shall we say...elevated palates. My mom used to make us Shepherd's Pie when we were kids. This is definitely a different slant on that traditional dish. I cut this in half for my husband and I, but in retrospect I wouldn't bother. You're going to want all the leftovers.
I tore the recipe out of a magazine about cast iron cooking, but you could easily pour the filling into a 9x13 baking pan if you don't want to go the bake-in-the-skillet route. I do love my cast iron, though, and did make my 1/2 recipe in a 10" skillet.
Chicken Shepherd's Pie
Filling:
- 2 Tablespoons butter
- 1 cup diced celery
- 1 cup each sliced carrots and button mushrooms (as you know, the mushrooms are always optional, and left out for me)
- 1 teaspoons minced fresh garlic
- 1/4 cups flour
- 2 cups chicken broth or stock
- 4 cups shredded cooked chicken
- 1 cup each frozen green peas and pearl onions, thawed (I didn't use pearl onions. I chopped a small onion and put it in with the celery and carrots)
- 1 Tablespoon minced fresh thyme OR 1 teaspoon dried
- Salt and pepper to taste
Topping:
- 2 pounds Yukon gold potatoes, peeled and cubed
- 4 Tablespoons butter, cubed
- 1 1/2 cups shredded white Cheddar
- 1 egg, lightly beaten
- 1 Tablespoon Dijon mustard
Preheat oven to 400°. For the filling melt the 2 Tablespoons butter in a large, oven safe skillet (I used a 10" cast iron) over medium heat. Add celery, carrots, mushrooms, and garlic; cover and sweat until softened, about 5 minutes.
Stir in flour and cook for a minute, then add broth, chicken, peas, onions and seasonings. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to low and simmer while the topping is coming together, about 20 minutes, but be careful not to boil off too much of the liquid. You want some sauce for those mashed potatoes.
For the potato topping, cook potatoes in boiling, salted water until fork tender, 12-15 minutes. Drain potatoes and mash, adding in butter, cheese, egg, and mustard. Season with salt and pepper. Spoon topping over filling in pan and bake for 25-30 minutes. Serves 6.