Tried & Tested

Hemsley & Hemsley: Cottage pie with cauliflower mash

You’ve got to love a dish like cottage pie at this time of year, with the familiar and memory inducing aromas of beef and rosemary making their way from the oven through the entire house, and after much buzz around the fantastic sibling duo Hemsley & Hemsley we thought we’d give their recipe a go.  A great choice for the health conscious too as they replace the carb-heavy potato topping with a far more acceptable cauliflower mash.

With wine in the recipe it seemed sensible to choose a nice bottle in order to save the leftovers to enjoy with dinner.  As cottage pie is quite a hearty, beefy meal, a sterdy bottle of Malbec was number one choice.  I went for the Cuarto Domino, Tolentino Malbec (2012) from Argentina, which I strongly recommend, as it compliments the strong, meat focussed dish perfectly.  This recipe involves a number of different herbs and flavourings which works superbly with the fragrance of this red, and it isn't a bottle that will send you to sleep for hours after dinner, its lighter to drink than other Malbec's you can come across, making sure the combination of the two isn't too heavy.

Ingredients (Serves 4)

Filling

•             1 tablespoon of butter
•             500g of minced beef
•             1 large onion/leek finely chopped (use both if you want to bulk up your filling)
•             1 garlic clove, finely chopped
•             2 medium carrots, finely diced
•             1 stick of celery, finely diced
•             1 medium courgette, finely diced
•             250ml red wine
•             1 tablespoon of tomato puree
•             1 tablespoon of tomato ketchup/1 teaspoon of sugar
•             1 teaspoon of dried or 1½ teaspoons of fresh thyme  (save some to garnish)
•             1 teaspoon of dried or 1½ teaspoons of fresh, roughly chopped rosemary
•             2 bay leaves
•             A small handful of fresh parsley, roughly chopped
•             350 - 400ml of hot homemade beef, chicken or vegetable stock
•             1 large pinch sea salt
•             1 large pinch black pepper

Cauliflower mash

•             2 small garlic cloves, peeled
•             2 large cauliflowers, remove outer green leaves
•             1 teaspoon of English mustard
•             1 tablespoon of butter to blend and 2 teaspoons chopped up to top the mash
•             1 large pinch sea salt
•             1 large pinch black pepper
•             Optional 2 teaspoons of chopped chives or 1 finely sliced spring onion
•             Optional 60g of mature cheddar cheese, grated

Method

•             Brown the mince in half a tablespoon of butter and set aside.
•             In the same pan, add the remaining butter and sauté the onions, celery and carrots, bay leaves, rosemary and thyme for 5 minutes.
•             Add the garlic and gently fry for a further minute.
•             Return the mince to the pan and stir in the tomato puree and red wine. Cook on a medium heat for a few minutes until the liquid has reduced.
•             Add the stock and simmer with the lid on for at least 30 minutes – you can also slow cook for up to an hour adding more stock or water if it’s starts to get dry.
•             Stir through the fresh parsley and taste for seasoning.
•             Meanwhile preheat the oven to 200C and roughly chop the cauliflower into equal sized pieces.
•             In a saucepan steam the cauliflower and whole garlic cloves with just a few tablespoons of water, lid on, for 5 minutes or until the cauliflower is tender. Use a                 knife to check.
•             Remove the pan from the heat, drain any excess liquid and add the butter, grated cheese and mustard. Blend or mash until creamy and smooth. If it’s too                     sloppy or wet allow the mash to evaporate on a low heat.
•             Season to taste and add the spring onions or chives.
•             Take a large oven dish or individual dishes and fill to two thirds of the beef mixture, then top with the cauliflower mash. Use a fork to criss-cross over the top                    and dot with bits of butter.  Bake for 25 – 30 minutes until golden. Finish with a sprinkle of chives or some fresh thyme leaves.

Helpful hints: To really boost the flavour of this home comfort dish, add a tablespoon of tomato ketchup, or a small teaspoon of sugar to enhance the richness of the filling.