Shepherd’s Pie

I love Shepard’s Pie! I love eating it around St. Patrick’s day. Well, let’s be honest with each other. I do love eating it any time of the year, frankly. I think that you do to. This version is simple, it’s quick, and most important it is delicious. What is best about this recipe is you can make it on a week day or have it for Sunday dinner. This is the ultimate comfort meal.

While researching the origins of Shepard’s Pie I found the following:

1. Shepard’s Pie used to be called Cottage Pie. What’s the difference? Technically the Shepard’s Pie term should only be used if it contains lamb and Cottage usually applies to those that contain beef.
2. The name “Cottage” has it’s origins with a kind of a meat pie around the time that the United Kingdom was just being introduced to potatoes from the new world. Why? Because the potato was affordable for the working class, many of whom lived in cottages. 
3. The version “Cottage” is older than “Shepard’s” by over a 100 years. 
4. There are different versions of this recipe in different cultures:
   1. In Chilean cuisine, a similar dish contains hard-boiled eggs, raisins, and black olives.
   2. In France, this same dish is called “hachis Parmentier” that gets it’s base name from a hatchet, which was used to chop or mince all the veggies that go into the dish.