Cottage Pie

Ingredients

• 2 lb beef
• 1 large onion, chopped
• 2 carrots (or 8 small ones)
• 2 garlic cloves (1 big, 1 small)
• 1 small can of peas (~1 lb)
• 1 tbs tomato purée
• 1 tbs thyme
• 1 beef cube
• 1 tsp Marmite
• 12 oz Guinness
• 4 oz red wine
• 1 tbs Worcestershire
• 8-12 oz mushrooms, chopped
• 1½ tsp salt
• ¾ tsp black pepper
• ½ C cheddar

Mash

• 3 potatoes (~3 lbs)
• 1 tbs butter
• ¼ C cream

Directions

1. Cook Mushrooms: Sauté mushrooms with butter, olive oil, onions, and red wine; set aside.
2. Brown Beef: Brown ground beef over medium-high and drain. Sauté 2 tbs onions to deglaze, then return beef and mushrooms to the pan.
3. Build Filling: Add seasonings, Marmite, tomato purée, stock cube, Worcestershire, peas, carrots, and beer. Bring to a boil, then lower heat, cover, and simmer until thick and nearly dry.
4. Prep Mash: Preheat oven to 400°F. Mash potatoes as the oven warms.
5. Assemble & Bake: Spoon filling into a deep casserole dish, top with mashed potatoes, add cheese, rough up the surface, and bake 25-30 minutes until golden.

Chef's Notes

• You can make the mashed potatoes ahead of time and hold them in a warming oven while preparing the rest of the dish.
• Use 1 lb frozen peas and carrots, and substitute tomato paste for tomato purée if needed.
• If Guinness isn't available, one 12-oz bottle of Shiner Bock works well.
• Cheese topping is optional, but it's a family favorite