I always love comfort food as the weather gets cooler and this Shepherd’s Pie fits the bill. But I don’t necessarily need a lot of heavy, starchy carbs to weigh me down so this recipe is light on the top using cauliflower as the crust. The roasted garlic cloves give it the most wonderful flavour!! (not to mention great nutritional value!).
The benefits of cauliflower and garlic go way beyond the delicious taste. Cauliflower is rich in antioxidants that provide an anti-inflammatory effect in the body. It also contains sulforaphane which helps to reduce oxidative stress and tissue/cell damage.
If you want to make this dish vegan, just substitute cooked lentils in for the ground meat. I hope you enjoy it!!
Paleo Shepherd's Pie
Ingredients
- 1.25 lbs ground meat grass-fed preferred
- 1/2 onion
chopped
- 4 garlic cloves
minced
- 1 carrot
shredded
- 1 zucchini
shredded
- 1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
- 1 tsp sea salt
- 1 tsp chili powder
- 1/2 tsp cumin
- 1 large cauliflower head
or 2 small
- 6 roasted garlic cloves
see instruction 1
- 1 tsp sea salt
Instructions
- Roasted garlic cloves - done ahead of time - don't skip this step! Using a sharp knife, cut ¼ inch from the top of a whole garlic bulb to expose the individual cloves. Place bulb (unpeeled) on top of a square of aluminum foil. Drizzle a bit of olive oil over the top of the bulb, just to moisten. Wrap the bulb with foil and bake in a preheated 400°F oven for 25 to 30 minutes, or until the cloves feel soft when pressed. Once cooled, the whole cloves should push out easily when pressed from the bottom.
- Prepare bottom layer. Heat oil in a large skillet over medium heat, and sauté onion + garlic until tender. Add the carrot + zucchini, cook until they start to soften. Add the ground meat, salt, and spices. Cook until the meat is browned, and very little moisture remains.
- Prepare cauliflower. Chop the cauliflower heads into small chunks, and steam until they soften. Add the steamed cauliflower, roasted garlic and salt to a food processor. On a low setting, puree until smooth. It may be necessary to use the tamper if you have one.
- Assemble the pie. To assemble your Paleo Pie, distribute the meat mixture evenly in the bottom of an 8-inch baking dish. Spread cauliflower mixture over the top, and bake for 25 minutes. If you want, you can sprinkle nutritional yeast on the top.
