Shepherd's Pie Recipe

In honor of St. Patrick's Day, I'm sharing my favorite Shepherd's Pie recipe. Although presentation is lacking with this dish, it is absolutely delicious and the recipe allows for a wide array of variation. I hate peas and mushrooms; they are commonly included with carrots and onions but I opted to leave them out.

Prep Time: 45 minutes // Bake Time: 45 Minutes // Serves: 8 (large portions)

Step 1: Prepare the Mashed Potatoes

Ingredients: 8 Russett Potatoes // 4 Tbsp. Butter // 1 cup Milk // Black Pepper

1. Boil Potatoes with skin on for about 30 minutes (until soft)
2. Peel (I leave a few bits of skin on) and dice potatoes
3. Add butter and mash, slowly adding milk into the mix. I prefer chunkier mashed potatoes so I use slightly less milk and mash without blending
4. Add a dash of black pepper

Step 2: Prepare the Meat and Vegetables

Ingredients: 3/4 cup diced Red Onion // 4 peeled, diced Carrots, 2 lb lean Ground Beef // 2 packets of Colman's Shepherd's Pie Seasoning // 2.5 cups Water

1. Brown the beef in a skillet over low heat, draining fat
2. Add the diced onions and carrots to the meat
3. Pour the contents of the Shepherd's Pie packet into 2.5 cups water and stir 
4. Add the mix into the skillet with the vegetables and meat and stir while bringing to a boil and let cool

Step 3: Prep and Bake

Ingredients: 2 cups shredded Extra Sharp White Cheddar

1. Preheat oven to 385F
2. Shred cheese
3. Spread meat and vegetables 1/2 inch thick in a baking dish (I used two baking dishes)
4. Spread a layer of mashed potatoes over meat and vegetables 
5. Spread a layer of shredded cheddar over the mashed potatoes
6. Bake at 385F for 45 minutes 
7. Cool for 15 minutes
8. Slice and serve 

Bain taitneamh as do bhéile! (Enjoy your meal!)

Inspiration: Eugène Delacroix

Eugène Delacroix (1798-1863) - Romanticism

Delacroix's early works indicate Neoclassical influence under tutelage of Pierre-Narcisse Guérin and the preeminent French painter of the era, Jacques-Louis David. However, by 1820, Delacroix's reverence for Peter Paul Rubens became apparent as he moved away from the predominant focus on clarity and outline of Neoclassicism and began to incorporate the movement, color, and sensuality synonymous with the Flemish Baroque style which Rubens led.

With his contemporary, Théodore Géricault, Delacroix commanded the movement of French Romanticism, which married Neoclassicism's symbolic subject - stories of historical significance reflected in the tumultuous French politics of the day - with the emotionalism of Baroque, and introduced exoticism and a demonstration of movement more violent than preceding styles.

By 1840, Delacroix's focus of color over clarity became even more evident, giving rise to the assertion that he was the fore-bearer of Impressionism. The founders of Impressionism certainly admired Delacroix, and several of his paintings have been interpreted by masters of not only that movement but its successors as well.

Eugène Delacroix, the Death of Sardanapolis, 1827

Eugène Delacroix, the Death of Sardanapolis, 1844

A comparison of two versions of "the Death of Saradanapolis" painted in 1827 and again in 1844 clearly depicts Delacroix's distancing from Neoclassical influence and towards the origin of Impressionism. His palette is bolder, his clarity of subject less manifested, emotionalism more obvious.

Edgar Degas (1834-1917) - French Impressionism

Eugène Delacroix, The Entry of the Crusaders in Constantinople, 1840

Edgar Degas, Entry of the Crusaders in Constantinople, 1860

Edgar Degas is most closely associated with the Impressionist movement although he incorporated less bold color in his painting, opting instead to utilize light to give form and shape, which sets his work apart from that more obviously aligned to the movement. Degas personally owned over 200 of Delacroix's works as he held his contemporary in great esteem.

Paul Cézanne (1839-1906) Impressionism/Post-Impressionism, early Cubism

Eugène Delacroix, Medea About to Kill her Children, 1838
Paul Cézanne, Medea, 1882

Cézanne painted "Medea" during what is known as his "Mature Period" (1878-1890), which marked a less turbulent time in the artist's life. His early paintings were in the style of Impressionism but by the mid 1870's Cezanne had come to reject the use of naturalistic color and light, leading to his Post-Impressionist era.

Vincent Van Gogh (1853-1890) Post-Impressionism

Eugène Delacroix, Pieta, 1850
Van Gogh, Pieta, 1889

Eugène Delacroix, The Good Samaritan, 1849
Van Gogh, The Good Samaritan, 1890

Van Gogh utilizes the short, distinct, brush strokes and thick relatively unmixed paints popular with Impressionists but employed the use of geometric shaping and color surrealism in his interpretations of both the "The Pieta" and "The Good Samaritan." While Van Gogh includes even more subject detail than Delacroix, it is more interpretive and emotional, which combined with utilization of un-natural color palette and distinct brush strokes marks the distinction between the work of the two masters.

Pablo Picasso (1881-1973) Cubism, Surrealism

Eugène Delacroix, the Women of Algiers in their Apartment, 1834

Picasso, Women of Algiers, 1955

Picasso's surrealist interpretation of Delacroix builds on the three-dimensional, multi-view point cubic work of Paul Cézanne. The women have been deconstructed and reassembled in abstract fashion, and color is entirely reflected through emotional execution.


I'm curious as to what Delcroix would have thought about the interpretations of his work.The French poet Charles Pierre Baudelaire said about the artist "Delacroix was passionately in love with passion, but coldly determined to express passion as clearly as possible." And as I read more about the life of the man, I'm inclined to believe that especially as he moved from Neoclassical influence and more toward the onset of Impressionism, he would have greatly appreciated the paintings of Degas, Cézanne, Van Gogh, and even Picasso as at the heart of each of the different movements reflected in these distinct styles is passion.