Shepard’s Pie is a staple in our house. The idea of a good Shepard’s Pie is to throw whatever you have in the fridge and top with mashed potatoes. This dish reminds me of home, and I love it! I thought a fun spin on the common Shepard’s Pie would be to make them into smaller portions and be able to freeze them. While this may seem time consuming and a bit of a space waster, I assure you that it is in fact genius. Think about it…. Want a good lunch but you don’t want to heat up a huge portion of something? Grab a personal Shepard’s Pie! Family is out of town and you don’t feel like take-out? Grab a personal Shepard’s Pie!
I used small foil containers that I found at the dollar store, but I am sure you could use pretty much anything that is about that size and could be stacked in the freezer to save space. With this recipe I was able to make 7 mini casseroles.
Shepard's Pie
Ingredients:
5 medium potatoes cooked and mashed
¼ cup sour cream
¼ cup milk
2 TB butter
2 cans of mixed vegetables
1 pound of ground turkey or ground beef
½ t paprika
½ garlic salt
Cheddar Cheese
Directions:
Preheat oven to 350°
Preheat oven to 350°
Spray the foil mini pans well, and set aside.
Cook the meat until browned, adding in the paprika and the garlic powder for flavor.
Cook your potatoes. Using a handheld mixer, mash the potatoes with the milk, butter and sour cream.
Assemble the bowls one by one.
Meat, Vegetables and topped with potatoes and cheese.
Cook in oven for 20-25 minutes or until the cheese is bubbly. Broiling the casseroles for the last minute, to get the browned topping.
Enjoy!
Freezing Directions:
Let the bowls cool completely.
Cover with foil and place in small Ziploc bag.
Freeze for up to 3 months
Reheating:
Place in convection oven at 400° for 45-50 minutes and cook until completely cooked through. If you have let them thaw, they will not need quite as long!
Mini casseroles are going to become a favorite of mine, I just know it! Now that I am eating roughly 15 times daily, I need small snacks I can eat up and enjoy. I hope you love them as much as we do!
Happy freezing,
These look so good! I want to try them!!
ReplyDeleteThey are the perfect addition to your freezer!
DeleteAre these personal sized or were your pans loaf sized?
ReplyDeletePictured are personal size, my husband likes to take them to work. But you could do bigger. It just wouldn't make as much or double the recipe!
DeleteCould you reheat these in the microwave? I'm looking for ideas for my husband to take to work but he needs quick and easy to reheat. Could he maybe thaw in the morning and then microwave at lunch time? How long would you microwave for?
ReplyDeleteHi! Thanks so much for reading!
DeleteI am sure you could microwave them. Maybe take them out of the freezer the night before and let thaw in the fridge. I would start with 3-5 minutes for microwaving, depending on power. Also make sure to use microwave safe storage containers!
Ok I will try that! Thanks! I just told my husband too bad you can't put foil in the microwave because those containers are perfect! I'll search amazon for some microwave safe ones.
ReplyDeleteThese look wonderful! Could you please share the actual size of these mini loaf pans? I have small casserole dishes that I think might work but if I knew the size (or volume of these mini loaf pans) it would be extremely helpful.
ReplyDeleteThank you so much!
Ellen
Hi Ellen!
DeleteThese are the the 1lb mini loaf pans that you can purchase at your local grocery store. The size is roughly 5.5in long x 3in wide x 2 in deep (roughly)! I like them because they are personal size and my husband can grab them quick and take them to work!
Any size would work though! If yours are bigger, double the recipe to make enough or just do one pan and freeze for the family!
If you have them frozen do you have it covered with foil, even if thawed?
ReplyDeleteWhen cooking? Whether you are heating up thawed or frozen, I would keep covered until the last few minutes of the cooking time and then uncover to get the top slightly crispy! Hope that answers your question!
DeleteIf you have them frozen or thawed after frozen, do you have them covered with foil?
ReplyDeleteYou can do either! Cook time would just vary. If frozen, you would need to cook closer to 45-50 minutes. When thawed they would only take abot 15 minutes to heat up! I keep mine covered with foil until the last two minutes, then uncover and bake. Hope this helps!
Deletehi! these look so quick and delish! can i know if i were to freeze these, do we freeze after they are fully cooked or freeze after the ingredients are all assembled in the containers?
ReplyDeleteYou would cook the ingredients first, Brown the meat and make the potatoes. You would then assemble and freeze! Hope this helps!
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ReplyDeleteHi! I too would like to know what size these pans are - either dimensions or volume, and whether you bake before freezing or freeze "raw" and then bake? Love your recipes, thank you!
ReplyDeleteHi! These are the the 1lb mini loaf pans that you can purchase at your local grocery store. The size is roughly 5.5in long x 3in wide x 2 in deep (roughly)! I like them because they are personal size and my husband can grab them quick and take them to work!
DeleteAlso, you assemble and freeze. Cook the meat first, make mashed potatoes and then make your layers. Everything is precooked before freezing. Hope that helps!