Celebrate St.Patrick’s Day with these hearty mini shepherd’s pies topped with fluffy green mashed potato frosting. Simple, yet delicious crowd-pleaser.
St. Patty’s day is just around the corner. Anyone is excited?
As a huge Guinness fan, I use this occasion as an excuse to use up as much stout as I can in my everyday cooking, in my soups, in my sauces, in cakes, or just straight up. Last year, I tried this Potato Cheddar Guinness Soup from Simply Recipes, and it was delicious. I also shared my favorite Guinness-infused Irish Shepherd’s Pie here on the blog.
But today, it’s not about Guinness. Instead, I made for you my cute little mini shepherd’s pies with fluffy green mashed potatoes. Don’t they look like cupcakes though? These hearty little appetizers are not little on flavor field and perfect for your St. Patrick’s Day party. They pair exceptionally well with glass of ice-cold stout.
Did I mention it’s incredibly easy to make these little bites? For the mashed potatoes, we use spinach for bright green coloring. It’s not overpowering and an awesome addition to our simple mashed potato frosting. We don’t want the mashed potatoes too runny, so don’t be tempted to add more milk.
For the meat base, it’s quite straight forward as well. Mix everything well. I find diving in with clean hands is the best way to mix the meat mixture. Here is my quick tip to divide the meat into 12 equal parts. No need to bring out scale here. Basically, flatten the mixture in the bowl and divide it into 4 parts, then each quarter into thirds, as if you’re cutting a pie.
One more tip, remember meat shrinks during cooking, so when you pipe the mashed potatoes, make sure it doesn’t cover the entire base. as pictured below.
Simple enough, don’t ya think?
What are you planning for St. Patrick’s Day?
Hope you enjoyed my recipe today. Thanks for stopping by!
Mini Shepherd's Pies
Ingredients
For Mashed Potatoes:
- 2 large russet potatoes about 500gr, peeled and cut into pieces
- ½ tablespoon salt
- ½ cup fresh spinach
- ¼ cup 60ml milk
- 1 tablespoon unsalted butter softened
- Ground black pepper to taste
For Meat Base:
- 1 lb 450gr ground beef
- 1 egg
- 2 garlic cloves pressed
- 1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon fresh thyme
- ½ cup frozen peas
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 375°F (190°C).
- In a large pot filled with water, boil the potatoes with ½ tablespoon of salt until tender, 15-20 minutes.
- Meanwhile, in a small saucepan, bring 2 cups of water to a boil. Remove from heat and add the spinach for 2 minutes. Strain the hot water, run the spinach under cold water and then squeeze out the excess water. Place the spinach into a blender and add the milk. Blend until smooth.
- Once the potatoes are cooked, strain. Using a potato masher, mash the hot potatoes with butter and spinach mixture until nice and smooth. (Make sure to mash the potatoes as soon as you strain for the fluffiest texture.) Taste it and salt and pepper to taste. Transfer it into a pastry bag, or a ziplock bag with one end cut.
- While potatoes are cooking, in a medium bowl, mix together ground beef, egg, garlic, Worcestershire sauce, salt and thyme. (Dig in with your clean hands; it’s the best way.) Add the frozen peas and mix well.
- Divide the meat mixture into 12 muffin cups. Pipe the mashed potatoes on top. (As meat shrinks during cooking, pipe the mashed potatoes so that it doesn’t completely cover the meat.)
- Bake for 25-30 minutes and serve warm.
Nutrition
These are ingenious! They’re such a cute size and look completely delectable, and I LOVE that the vibrant green color is all natural!
Thank you!!
How fun! Pinning & will definitely be making (love that the green comes from spinach – bonus veggie!).
Thank you, Lisa!
Oh my…so delicious! Pinned and tweeted. Thank you for being part of our party. I hope to see you on Monday at 7. Lou Lou Girls
My pleasure! Thanks for hosting a great party!
What a festive spin on a classic, so creative! And spinach mashed potatoes are so yummy, too 🙂
Thank you, Denisse! Love the spinach mashed potatoes too.
What a fun idea! I’ve been planning to make a play on a shepherd’s pie, too, but I have to admit that a “cupcake” version is way cuter than what I had in mind. 😀 Pinning!
Thank you, Joy! 🙂
Hello! Stopping by from the Weekend re-Treat link party. I love shepherd’s pies and these are so cute! Thank you for sharing. I’ve pinned it to share with others.
My pleasure, Ashley. Thanks for stopping by! 🙂
I love these! So cute!
Thank you, Diana!
Totally cute!!
Thanks, Karen! 😉
So cute! Love this!
Thanks, Emmie!
These mini pies are too fun! One of the most attractive versions of shepherd’s pie I have ever seen! Simply brilliant!
Haha they’re pretty photogenic! 🙂 Thanks, Julia!