Cottage Pie 2

From Lara

1 1/2 pounds of mashed potatoes (whipped with milk, cream, sour cream, however you like)
2 TB canola oil
1 cup chopped onion
2 carrots, peeled and sliced small
2 cloves of garlic, minced
1 1/2 ground beef (or ground lamb for traditional shepherd's pie)
1 1/2 teaspoon of salt
1/2 teaspoon of pepper
2 TB flour
2 TB tomato paste
1 cup chicken or beef broth
1 teaspoon of Worcestershire sauce
2 teaspoons freshly chopped rosemary leaves*
1 teaspoon freshly chopped thyme leaves*
1/2 cup fresh or frozen corn kernels
1/2 cup fresh or frozen peas

While potatoes are boiling before mashing, make beef filling.

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

Place canola oil into a 12 inch saute pan and set over medium-high heat. Once the oil shimmers, add onion and carrots and saute until they begin to take on color, approximately 3 to 4 minutes. Add garlic and stir to combine. Add ground beef (or lamb), salt, and pepper and cook until browned and cooked through. Sprinkle meat with flour and toss to coat, continuing to cook another minute. Add tomato paste, broth, Worcestershire sauce, rosemary, and thyme and stir to combine. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low, cover and simmer slowly 10 to 12 minutes or until the sauce is thickened slightly.

Add the corn and peas to the meat mix and spread evenly into an 11 by 7 inch glass baking dish. Top with mashed potatoes, starting around the edges to create a seal to prevent the mixture from bubbling up, and smooth with a rubber spatula. Bake on the middle rack of the oven for 25 minutes or just until the potatoes begin to brown. Remove to a cooling rack for at least 15 minutes before serving.

*I didn't have these herbs fresh, so I just used a dash of the dried herbs.