This is a sponsored conversation written by me on behalf of McCain Foods USA, Inc. ©. The opinions and text are all mine. #Walmart #McCainSmiles
Kid Friendly Shepherd’s Pie Cups:
Individually made shepherd’s pie with a fun twist. These little shepherd’s pies have a delicious ground beef and veggie filling, but instead of being topped with a traditional mashed potato, they are topped with the McCain Smiles Mashed Potato Shapes. Making them super kid friendly and fun.
If you are looking for a tasty and fun, mid-week meal idea the whole family will love, look no further, this is it. The savory and tasty filling is something mom and dad will love, packed with veggies and savory meat. But by topping it with these fun smiley faced potatoes, you get the components of a traditional shepherd’s pie in a cute, kid friendly twist.
A traditional shepherd’s pie is a savory meat and veggie filling topped with mashed potatoes and some cheese, and baked to bubbly perfection. This recipe takes all the elements of a classic or traditional shepherd’s pie, and makes them easier and more kid friendly.
This is the kind of recipe kids love, because it is so cute and fun, but also because it tastes amazing. My kids love shepherd’s pie, and when I replace the traditional mashed potatoes with McCain Smiles Mashed Potato Shapes, it is smiles all around. I am smiling because there are no artificial flavors, and the McCain Smiles are made with real potatoes. Plus they really are just so cute!
How do you Make Individual Shepherd’s Pies?
This is one of those recipes I super love because my husband and I enjoyed it just as much as the kids did, but the kids thought it was just for them. And because it is really so simple. In a nut shell this is how you make these fun shepherd’s pies:
- Brown your ground beef
- Saute your garlic and onions
- Make a roux (butter and flour, so easy)
- Add your beef stock, then mix everything together. You can use fresh carrots and peas, or use a bag of frozen. I love how easy it is to grab a package of frozen, but when I have more time I love using fresh.
- Fill your muffin tins, I used silicone to make it really easy to get all the tasty goodness out.
- Top with cheese, and McCain Smiles Mashed Potatoes prepared according to package directions.
- Bake in oven until cheese is melted!
- Enjoy!
Where Can you Find McCain Smiles?
Aren’t these just the cutest little things? Well I had not seen them before, but I actually just got them at Walmart in the freezer section. They were where you find the other freezer potato items. Check then out here. https://bit.ly/2pcefF4
More fun recipes that will make your kids smile:
And look for other McCain Smiles products at Walmart, including:
- Extra Crispy Crinkle Fries
- Seasoned Curly Fries
- Craft Beer Battered Thin Cut Fries
These tasty mashed potato shapes are made with real mashed potatoes, and while I really loved them in this shepherd’s pie, my kids love them for after school snacking, as an appetizer for parties, and when they need a snack.
Kid approved, super easy, 20 minutes to make, and tastes amazing…this is why we love these Kid Friendly Shepherd’s Pie Cups. Honestly, these little babies are meaty, savory, classic comfort food, but with a kid friendly twist. They are perfect for dinner on a busy night, but fun enough that you can use them for parties, entertaining, and more. And my kids aren’t the only ones that love them.
Something to note: Shepherd’s pie is traditional in the UK/Ireland, and is made with lamb or mutton. I find ground beef is more to my kid’s liking, and easier to find. But you can substitute the more traditional ground meats if you would like, the flavors will still hold up, and it will be just as delicious!
Enjoy!
More Amazing Recipes
- Halloween Cupcake Ideas(not really a recipe but still great)
- Plant-based Chik’N Sandwich
- Roasted Chickpeas
- Greek Chicken Orzo Salad
- Lemon Chicken Pasta
Kid Friendly Shepherd’s Pie Cups
Ingredients
- 1 lb ground beef
- 1/2 Tbs Worcestershire sauce
- 1 tsp salt
- 1 tsp pepper
- 1 tsp dried parsley
- 1/2 cup yellow onion diced fine
- 1 tsp minced garlic
- 1/4 cup butter
- 3 Tbs flour
- 1 1/2 cups beef stock
- 2 Tbs heavy cream
- 12 ounces Peas and Carrots frozen
- Salt and Pepper to taste
- 1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
- 1/2 package McCain® Smiles® Mashed Potato Shapes
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 425 degrees, and cook 1/2 a package of McCain® Smiles® Mashed Potato Shapes according to package directions. Leave oven on when finished to finish the shepherd's pie cups.
- Meanwhile, in a large fry pan, add ground beef, Worcestershire sauce, salt, pepper, and parsley, and cook over medium heat, breaking up beef, and browning.
- Once beef is browned, drain the grease off it, and remove it from the fry pan into a large bowl. Set aside.
- In the same fry pan, add onions, and garlic, and sauté over medium heat 3-4 minutes, until onions become translucent, and fragrant. Add onions to the bowl with the browned beef.
- Add butter to the pan and return to the stove to medium heat, and let it melt.
- Once melted, use a wire whisk to whisk in the 3 Tbs of flour, forming a paste.
- Slowly add beef stock, whisking as you add it, until incorporated.
- It should be thickening nicely as you do this.
- Once desired thickness is reached (1-2 minutes), add frozen vegetables, heavy cream, and the ground beef and onion mixture.
- Stir, and heat until veggies are heated through. Taste, and adjust seasoning with salt and pepper as desired.
- Fill a muffin pan with this ground beef mixture, and top with cheddar cheese, and a cooked McCain® Smiles® Mashed Potato Shape.
- Put in already heated oven, and cook 4-5 minutes until cheese is melted.
- Serve and enjoy.
Nutrition
Our recipe card software calculates these nutrition facts based on averages for the above ingredients, different brands, and quality of produce/meats may have different nutritional information, always calculate your own based on the specific products you use in order to achieve accurate macros for this recipe.
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Dani says
I loved this. My daughter did not but she is super picky and not a huge meat eater. Will be making again for myself lol
Rachael says
It is so fun, too bad she didn’t like it, but glad you did.