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I recently saw a Tip Hero video on Facebook, you know the ones -- quick little video snippets that show you how to make an awesome looking recipe!?
Anyways, this recipe was for Shepherd's Pie Potato Skins, and someone shared it in a Whole30 group I'm in and said "Anyone else think they could Whole30 this?" And I thought.... YEP!
So here's my Whole30 version! A sloppy beef and gravy and veggie filling inside a potato shell, topped with mashed potatoes! Due to multiple steps including baking potatoes, (i.e., a bit of a pain in the ass), I'd say they are more of a make-ahead or weekend type of meal! I'm not about to tackle these on a Wednesday night.
If I'm being 100% honest, I think next time, I'll save the hassle and just serve the filling over mashed potatoes -- though I have to say, they would be impressive little guys to serve at a dinner party or something! Since the recipe makes 8, I froze 4 of them for another time.
NOTE: I had more filling than I needed to fill the 8 medium potatoes I had. SO -- you could get 8 larger potatoes, OR up it to 10 or so medium potatoes. You'll probably have leftover mashed potatoes too, so you can just make a meal out of the extras!
Shepherd's Pie Twice Baked Potatoes
[Whole30 - Paleo - Gluten Free - Grain Free - Dairy Free]
Ingredients:
Potatoes:
8 medium russet potatoes (I used 8 and had extra filling, so you could do 10)
~6 Tbsp almond milk or coconut milk (more or less)
2 Tbsp ghee
1/2 - 1 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper
Filling:
1 lb ground beef
1/2 sweet onion onion, finely chopped
8 oz mushrooms, finely chopped
8 oz frozen green beans (2/3 of a 12oz bag)
8 oz frozen carrots (2/3 of a 12 oz bag)
1 tsp salt
3/4 tsp black pepper
1/2 tsp ground thyme
1/2 tsp ground sage
2 cups beef broth
3 Tbsp tapioca flour (more or less)
2 Tbsp water (more or less)
Instructions:
Baking and Mashing the Potatoes
- First, bake the potatoes (you can do this step ahead of time). Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees. After scrubbing and drying the potatoes, pierce about 8 times with a fork, place on a foil lined baking sheet, spray with olive oil, and sprinkle with salt. Bake for about an hour (flipping half way through), or until potatoes give some when squeezed.
TIP: To make this step MUCH faster, just microwave your potatoes! Microwave on high for 5 minutes, flip over, and microwave for 5 min more. - Cut the tops off of the baked potatoes and scoop out the flesh (into a bowl), leaving 1/4 of an inch or so intact with the skin.
TIP: Save the tops for snacks or breakfast! - Now make the mashed potatoes. Add ghee and half of the milk to the bowl with the potato flesh. Season with salt and pepper. Beat with a hand mixer (or mash with a hand masher) until the mashed potatoes are the consistency you like. Add more milk as needed.
Making the Filling
- Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add a drizzle of olive oil and cook the onions and mushrooms for about 3 minutes.
TIP: I used my little Cuisinart chopper to finely chop up the mushrooms. I like the flavor but not the texture! They cooked down and you can't even tell they are in there! - Add ground beef to skillet, breaking it up and browning it, and season with salt, pepper, sage, and thyme. Add a few dashes of coconut aminos.
- Once beef is browned, add carrots and green beans to skillet. Continue to cook for 3 minutes.
TIP: Since the carrots I bought were in big coins, I cooked them in the microwave for 4 minutes then chopped them up before adding to the skillet. I added the green beans straight from the freezer. - Add broth to skillet and bring to a boil.
- In a small bowl, make a slurry with 3 Tbsp tapioca flour and 2-3 Tbsp water. Add half of the slurry to the skillet and stir to combine. Continue to cook until the gravy has thickened.
TIP: It should only take a minute or two for the gravy to thicken. Add more slurry to make it thicker. I ended up using the full 3 Tbsp of tapioca flour.
Assembly and Baking
- Scoop meat mixture into the potatoes, then top with the mashed potatoes.
TIP: If you want to get fancy, put the potatoes into a piping bag and use that to pipe on the topping. If not, just add a blob, fluff it / spread it out with a fork, and you're all set (which is what I did!). You may have extra filling and mashed potatoes -- just save them for another meal! - Bake for 10-15 minutes at 350 degrees, then switch to "Broil" and bake for 5 minutes or until the potato topping is browned and crispy.
- DIG IN!
- If you want to eat half now and freeze half for later, once they cool, wrap in plastic wrap and store in a zip-lock bag in the freezer. To reheat, allow them to thaw then microwave or reheat in oven.
