Hearty winter dinners

Shepherd's pie

SERVES 5 - 6

I think this has to be one of the best family foods, but don't underestimate it as a great dinner party main course. You can even replace the lamb with minced beef (for a cottage pie) or with cooked, chopped duck meat.

50g (1¾oz) butter
2 onions, chopped
salt and pepper
1kg (2lb 4oz) minced lamb, not too lean, or minced cooked lamb left over from a roast
250ml (9 fl.oz) lamb or chicken stock
2 tablespoons roux
1-2 tablespoons Ballymaloe Country Relish or something similar
Mashed potatoes made with 1kg (2lb 4oz) potatoes
Garlic butter, to serve

Preheat the grill in the oven. Melt the butter in a large saucepan. Add the chopped onions, season with salt and pepper, cover with a butter wrapper or a disc of greaseproof paper and a lid and cook on a gentle heat until soft but not coloured. Add the mince, increase the heat and cook, stirring regularly, for a few minutes until the meat changes colour. Pour in the stock, bring to the boil, decrease the heat and cover with a lid and continue to cook for about 20 minutes or until the meat is cooked, taking care not to let it burn on the bottom (you can also put it into the oven at 160°C/325°F/gas 3). Strain the liquid off the meat, pour back into the saucepan and bring back up to the boil. Add 1 tablespoon of the roux and whisk until the juices have thickened. Whisk in more roux if it isn't thick enough. Pour the juices back in with the meat and add the relish and some salt and pepper to taste. Pour into a large pie dish or individual dishes. Place the mashed potato on top, score with a fork and put it under a hot grill to brown the potato slightly. If preparing the pie in advance, when ready to eat, put the Shepherd's pie into a moderate oven (180°C/350°F/gas 4) for 15-25 minutes, until hot and bubbling. Serve with a few pats of garlic butter melting on top.

NOTE: If you would like the potato to be very golden on top, add 1 beaten egg or 1 egg yolk to the mashed potato with the butter when mashing it.