Irish Shepherd’s Pie With Guinness

Irish Shepherd’s Pie With Guinness

 

Ingredients

3 tablespoons Olive oil

2 lb Lean ground beef or Lamb (i've even used turkey)

1/4 teaspoon Sea salt and pepper (to season meat)

1 Onion (large)

2 teaspoons Minced garlic

1 tablespoon Dijon mustard

2 to 4 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce

1 cup Guinness stout

1 teaspoon Dried thyme

1 teaspoon Dried parsley

1/2 teaspoon Dried sage

1/2 teaspoon Dried marjoram

12 oz Peas and carrots (frozen)

3 lb Russet potatoes

2 oz Kerrygold Butter (1/4 stick)

1/4 to 1/2 cup Low-fat sour cream

1 cup White Kerrygold cheddar cheese (grated)

Gravy

2 packets Brown gravy mix

1 and 1/2 cup Water

3 fl oz Guinness stout

1 teaspoon Tomato paste

1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce

1 teaspoon Brown Sugar

Directions

Step 1	Peel and cube the potatoes and place them in a large saucepan. Cover them with water. Turn the heat on high and set them to boil. Add some salt to the cooking water. Once the water is boiling, reduce the heat to a simmer. After 15 to 20 minutes they should be fork tender and ready to be drained.
Step 2	While the potatoes are boiling, season the beef with salt and pepper. Heat 2 tablespoons of oil in a large skillet. Brown the beef in two to three batches, depending upon the size of your skillet. Strain the beef through a colander to drain off the excess fat. Set aside.
Step 3	Add the last tablespoon of oil to the pan and brown the onions and garlic in the skillet.
Step 4	Return the beef to the skillet with the onions. Next add the Dijon mustard, the Guinness, Worcestershire sauce and beef broth. Stir well.
Step 5	Add the thyme, parsley, sage and marjoram. Stir to disperse them throughout the beef broth.
Step 6	While the meat sauce is reducing over low heat, strain the potatoes when tender. Mash well or pass them through a potato ricer. Add the butter and half the sour cream. Mash thoroughly, adding additional sour cream as necessary to smooth the consistency of the mashed potatoes.
Step 7	When the meat mixture has thickened nicely, pour it into the bottom of a greased 2-quart glass baking dish (8″ x 11″). Top the meat layer with thawed peas and carrots, spreading them evenly over the surface of the meat. At this point you can add a bit of the Guinness gravy. Spoon the mashed potato over the vegetable layer and spread gently over the top.
Step 8	Place the shepherd’s pie in an oven pre-heated to 350 degrees F. Cook for 15 minutes before adding a layer of grated cheese. Return to the oven and bake for a further 20 to 30 minutes. The shepherd’s pie is ready when the surface is golden brown and crisping at the edges. Remove it from the oven. To make Guinness gravy.
Step 1	Add the brown gravy packets to the water in a saucepan over high heat. Whisk in tomato paste, Worcestershire sauce, Guinness and brown sugar. Keep whisking the gravy as it comes to the boil. Remove from the heat once it starts to bubble.
Step 2	Using a metal serving spatula, divide the shepherd's pie into 6 to 8 rectangular servings. Serve with gravy poured over top, if desired.

Apple Cinnamon Pancakes

I keep trying new pancake recipes and this one tops the list. I have to say that I miss the fruit topping on these pancakes, so I added it as a topping with the nuts.  

Ingredients

• 1 medium apple, cored & chopped
•  1 cup  almond milk
• ½ cup fine wholemeal (whole wheat) 
• 1/3 cup rolled oats 
• 2 tsp baking powder
• 1 tsp ground cinnamon
• pinch of ground nutmeg
• pinch of salt
• ½ Tbsp coconut oil, for frying
• These pancakes are delicious served with a sprinkling of nuts, ground linseed and a drizzle of
• natural syrup. Any leftover pancakes can be stored in the refrigerator for up to three days. 
• Gently warm through in the microwave or on the hob before serving.
• Instructions
• Place the milk and apple in a blender. 
• Pulse to break up the apple then blend on high speed until smooth. 
• Add the flour, oats, baking powder, cinnamon, nutmeg, and salt, and pulse until incorporated. Transfer the batter to a jug and allow to rest for 5 minutes or so (this can happen while the pans are heating). If possible, use two non stick frying pans (skillets) to halve the cooking time. Brush the bottom of the pans with a little oil and heat on a medium heat. When the oil is hot, pour a small ladle of batter into the pan (equivalent to a ¼ cup).
• Gently swirl the pan to spread out the batter to a  5 inch diameter. 
• Once the pancakes start to firm up, carefully flip them over using a thin spatula. 
• Cook for a further minute or so, until the underneath is lightly browned.

It's not just a diet, but a lifestyle change!

Back in November 2015, we had a painful realization that our diet was killing us.  Diagnosed high cholesterol and blood pressure was only the beginning.  Over weight, tired and in pain was not the lifestyle we envisioned when we retired.    We wanted to be healthy 60 and 70 year old adults.  We wanted to be fit to travel the world and continue to explore as we did when we were in the military.

We knew we needed to change something, anything.  Kim as a chef and nutrition guru, started to research nutrition and diets.  In June 2015, we started the South Beach diet.  But that wasn’t working either.  We lost a few pounds, but our cholesterol didn’t come down.  Then in November is came to a painful point.  Kim thought she was having a heart attack!  It wasn’t that so much as it was the acid re-flux and the hernia that was so inflamed that it was causing problems through out her body.

Talking with a nutritionist, we decided to try something different in eating and cooking.  We were introduced to whole, plant based foods.  Kim was given a book called “Fork over Knives”.  (Recommend reading for more information on this vegan lifestyle.)

After reading about this new way of eating, we jumped in with both feet.  This  is our journey.