Shepherd’s Pie is a traditional English dish. In Britain it is generally made with lamb or mutton; in this recipe I have made a simple ground beef shepherd’s pie and added bacon for extra flavor.
Shepard’s pie is often referred to as “cottage pie,” by the English; it is a casserole made of cooked meat and vegetables that is then topped with mashed potatoes and baked. I have made this dish into a Paleo casserole by using Mashed Cauliflower for the topping. This reduces the glycemic index of the dish and increases the nutritional content, since cauliflower is a super food.
I based my recipe for ground beef Shepherd’s Pie, on this Shepherd’s Pie recipe from functionalfoodie.com. As you can see, I made some adjustments. First, I eliminated the tomato sauce, as research from Dr. Loren Cordain points to the possibility that tomatoes contain immune disrupting lectins (I have therefore eliminated them from my diet as I have MS). I also did not use coconut milk in the mashed cauliflower topping, and skipped the Worcester sauce (since I’m too lazy to read ingredients and prefer to use the simple spices in my spice rack).
I hope you enjoy this gluten free comfort food as much as I have!
Comments
225 responses to “Paleo Shepherd’s Pie”
“I thought you can’t have potatoes” my wife said. She couldn’t tell it’s cauliflower. Taste great but I found the the cauliflower taste a bit too plane. Will add some salt next time.
Thanks Billy!
I add in a packet of Hidden Valley ranch seasoning, and–oh, my god–it is delicious that way.
I like to add some Parmesan to my cauliflower mash. ❤️❤️ Very good! Adds a little flavor and binds it a bit
Thanks Kate!
This dish was absolutely fantastic! Love your recipes!
Theresa, thanks so much. I’m so happy to hear this was fantastic :-)
Your recipes sound delicious but I wish you included the nutritional facts. Yes I could do it myself but if I did and some items were too high I wouldn’t make it. Would be nice to know so I could chose the recipes that fit my diet without spending so much time plugging in ingredients. Just a thought. Thanks Carole
Carole, thanks so much for your feedback. For more information on nutrition please go here:
https://elanaspantry.com/nutrition-information/
Have an amazing day!
Elana
This is by far my favorite Paleo shepherd pie! So good. I would like to make for a expecting mother. Would this freeze well?
Ann, I haven’t tried that, if you do I hope you’ll stop back by and let us know if it works. I’m so happy to hear this is your favorite paleo shepherd pie :-)
I’ve frozen this a bunch of times (all for new moms, myself included). I usually do a sweet potato topping so i can’t definitively comment on how the cauliflower will do (though I imagine it would be totally fine), but the rest of it freezes perfectly.
Cait, thanks so much!
I made this tonight for dinner…..Yum!!! Every recipe we try on your site is a winner! Thank you Elana
Cindy, thanks for your awesome comment! I’m so happy to hear that every recipe you try of mine is a winner :-)
Can you use butter or coconut oil instead of olive oil?
Jackie, I haven’t tried that so not sure, if you do experiment please let us know how it goes :-)
I’ve used it with butter and it’s super good :)
Hi Elana!
Do I need to cook the cauliflower before adding it to the food processor? A little confused on this step!
Megan, yes :-)
This is one of my absolute favorite recipes – I’ve been making it quite a few times a year for the past few years – Just wanted to say thank you!! Everyone I’ve made it for, health-conscious or not, has loved it – no one knows the cauliflower mash isn’t mashed potato until I tell them :)
Rachel, thanks for letting us know this is one of your absolute favorites and that everyone loves it :-)
elana, Thank you for everything you do, I so appreciate your creativity and generosity.
You’re welcome :-)
Elana, We loved this recipe… my husband tends to be anti-anything paleo, so I mixed the cauliflower w/some grated white sweet potato, and cooked them together until tender, put that into my food processor, added a couple of tbsp. of butternut squash I needed to use, added the olive oil and used that on top of the pie… I also often use leftover roast beef or roast lamb instead of the ground meat, and it is delicious… I only used 2 slices of thick bacon, and that was just right… the bacon is a nice touch… Thank you for this lovely recipe and all the testing you do for the delicious recipes you share w/us.
You’re welcome Marilyn! So glad you and your husband loved this recipe :-)
Just a quick note from a British person regarding the alternative naming of the pie… Shepherds pie refers to a lamb filling while cottage pie will have a beef filling… Clue is on the name… Also delicious with lentils instead of meat for vegans and vegetarian options
Thanks Erika!
My girlfriend uses red lentils to make the mashed topping, instead of cauliflower. Simply overboil, add butter/coconut oil and milk/unsweetened almond milk and mash or blend in a food processor.
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