A Britsh classic, but this version has been given a nutritious boost to allow you to enjoy without feeling like your missing out on those vital minerals and vitamins; it may seem like I haven’t really made much of a change, but using Spelt flour instead of plain flour adds more zinc and protein, it is still wheat based and contains gluten but we are making small changes here, adding cinnamon also gives you the great benefits of including antioxidants along with anti-inflammatory properties. Small changes make a big difference in the long run, we don’t have to change our whole diet and create stress in the kitchen to make our meals healthier. I love using herbs, spices and anything else I can add that increases the nutritional value of the meal.
Using bone broth adds a lot more punch to the dish, just google the benefits of bone broth and you will see the difference it has compared to adding just your standard stock cube or store bought stock. The last tweak is the use of carrot or a root vegetable of your choice to the dish, this again adds a little more to the mash instead of just using potato for the topping, adding garlic to the mash not only gives it a lovely garlicky taste but it also increases the medicinal properties.
Remember small tweaks create a big shift in how your meal tastes and provides your family with the nutritional benefits we all need.
[ingredients title=”Ingredients”]
- 3 tablespoons of ghee, lard or fat of choice
- 3 Garlic cloves crushed
- 2 carrots
- 2 teaspoons of Worcestershire sauce replacement ( see *below)
- 1 kg organic beef mince
- 400ml beef bone broth (I use either bone broth powder or organic beef bone broth)
- 2 tablespoons of fresh parsley
- 2 tablespoons of fresh Thyme
- a small sprinkle of cinnamon
- 1 1/2 teaspoon tomato paste
- 2 tablespoons of spelt flour
- 2 bay leaves
For the mash
- 60g butter
- 1 carrot/ or parsnip/ or sweet potato
- 2 garlic cloves crushed
- 800g potatoes
- salt and pepper
- splash of milk (optional)
* Worcestershire sauce replacement, in the traditional recipe they use Worcestershire sauce, if you want to use it its fine, but if you really want to rid your cooking of processed sauces etc, then you can use this recipe. Personally I feel we have tweaked the recipe enough and the small amount of Worcestershire sauce used won’t make too much of a difference, but if you wish to use a replacement then here it is.
- 2 teaspoons soy sauce, 1/4 teaspoon lemon juice,1/4 teaspoon raw sugar and a dash of hot sauce (tabasco sauce)
[directions title=”Directions”]
- Place your list items here
[/directions]
Add 2 tablespoons of your fat to a heavy bottom saucepan and slowly fry the onions and carrots for 5 minutes, once softened add the crushed garlic and cook for a further 2 minutes, then remove the onion and carrot mix from the pan and add the rest of the fat and fry off the beef until lightly browned and broken up, add the spelt flour and stir to combine.
Add the tomato paste, herbs, cinnamon, bone broth and Worcester sauce along with the onion mix and bring to the boil.
Allow to simmer for 35 min, if the mix becomes dry add a little water, also check for seasoning, don’t be afraid to add salt, you are not using processed stock so you can add more seasoning to taste, turn off and set aside.
For the mash
Bring a large pan of salted water to the boil, add the potatoes and carrots/parsnip and boil for 20 min, once tender to a fork, drain and then add the butter, garlic, and a splash of milk then mash, set aside.
Add the beef mince to a casserole dish and spread out the mash using a fork to cover the mince, season the top with salt and pepper.
Place in the oven on 180 for 30 min or until golden and the mash forms a crispy topping.
Enjoy
