Sweet Potato Shepherd’s Pie (Healthy Twist)
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Ahh Saturday, sweet sweet Saturday. Cold weather in Alberta has got me craving comfort food, with a healthy twist. Like this shepherd’s pie. Yes, you can definitely make it with regular white potatoes, but I love using sweet potato (which by the way, is so confusing to distinguish between that and a yam. Anyone else get confused? No, just me?).
Not only are sweet potatoes a good carbohydrate (they can actually help regulate blood sugar!), but they are also chock-full of vitamin A (yay for skin & eye health) and contain vitamin C, B1, B2, B6 and manganese (among many other nutrients!). Although they are quite healthy and can help regulate blood sugar in moderate amounts, I would recommend including them in your diet in moderation. Personally, I try to include sweet potato in my diet 1-3 times per week, whether that’s in a hash-style meal or juiced with cucumber, orange, ginger and lemon. Now, let’s get to the recipe!
Oh shepherd’s pie, how I ♥ you.
This recipe was a big hit with the bf so I decided to share it with you! I’ve made it a few times now and it never lasts longer than 1 day in the kitchen! I swapped out white potatoes for creamy sweet potatoes and we prefer this style much more than with white potatoes.
- 2 medium sweet potatoes – peeled and chopped
- 6 garlic cloves – split amount in half (3 x 3)
- 4 medium carrots- peeled and chopped into small pieces
- .500 – 600g ground beef
- 2 tbsp coconut oil (or oil of choice)
- 1 cup organic sweet corn
- 2.5 cups peas
- 1 small head of broccoli
- 1/2 tsp ground thyme + 1/2 tsp regular thyme (not ground)
- 2 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
- 3 tbsp tomato paste
- 1 flax egg (optional – see note below)
- 2 tsp rosemary dried
- 1/2 tsp chili powder
- 1 tsp onion powder
- 1 tbsp butter (optional)
- 1/2 – 1 tsp pink sea salt + cracked pepper – you can add more if preferred – this is for filling
- 1/2 tsp salt + pepper – this is for sweet potato top layer
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees
- In a large pot, add the sweet potato pieces with 3 cloves of garlic and enough water to cover. Bring to a boil for a few minutes then turn down heat to medium – high heat. Let lightly boil until sweet potatoes are tender.
- Mince remaining garlic cloves and set aside.
- In a food processor, add in head of broccoli and pulse until it’s in really small pieces. This should be 1.5-2 cups worth. Set aside.
- In a large frying pan, heat up the coconut oil and then cook up the ground beef. Once the meat is almost done, add in the carrots, corn, peas, minced garlic, and broccoli. Stir around and put a lid on it so they can steam up and cook faster. You can add a splash of water to help with the “steam cooking”. Keep stirring every few minutes to prevent burning.
- Add in both thyme spices, worcestershire sauce, tomato paste, rosemary, onion powder, chili powder, salt and pepper and stir up. Taste test (my favorite) and see if you need to adjust the salt and pepper to your liking.
- Note: If using a flax egg, simply mix 1 tbsp ground flax with 2.5 tbsp water and let sit for a few mins. Add it to the mixture and cook up. I wouldn’t use a real egg.
- Once the sweet potatoes are done boiling, strain them and add them to a food processor. Add in some butter (optional) and some salt and pepper to taste. Pulse until creamy and smooth.
- Pour veggie beef mixture onto a glass baking pan evenly ( my glass baking dish doesn’t have the measurements anywhere, so I am actually not sure how big it was. I would use a larger one though). Then, pour the sweet potato mixture on top evenly. You can sprinkle rosemary and ground black pepper on top too.
- Bake for 30-35 minutes. Once done, let cool and enjoy as is OR add a dollop of organic ketchup.
I hope you enjoy this as much as Josh and I did! So yummy, especially with a bit of ketchup.
Marcy xo
