Shepherd’s Pie Stuffed Mushrooms

Ingredients

• 1.5 pounds of extra large mushrooms (20-24 mushrooms—about 3” in diameter)
• Olive oil cooking spray or olive oil
• 1/2 pound ground beef or lamb
• 1 tablespoon of olive oil
• 1 cup yellow onions, peeled and finely diced
• 2 cloves of garlic, minced
• 1/4 cup celery, finely diced
• 1/3 cup carrot, peeled and finely diced
• 1/3 cup parsnip, peeled and finely diced
• 1/3 cup turnip, peeled and finely diced
• 1 teaspoon fresh thyme, chopped
• 1 tablespoon tomato paste
• 1/2 cup frozen peas, defrosted
• 1/2 cup stock (Any kind of stock is fine. I used chicken stock.)
• Kosher salt
• Freshly ground black pepper
• 1 pound Russet potatoes, peeled and cooked
• 1/2 cup half and half
• 1/2 cup salted butter
• Kosher salt
• white pepper
• 1/2 cup finely grated cheddar cheese (I used Kerrygold Aged Cheddar)

Directions

1. Remove the stems from the mushrooms and reserve for another purpose. Trim the edges of the mushroom caps to make more room for the filling. I did this by using a paring knife to just cut the ridge off the mushrooms. Be careful not to cut away too much of the edge so that you still have a cup-like shape that will hold the filling.
2. Brown ground beef in a medium skillet, over medium heat. Strain beef from the fat and return the fat to the pan.
3. If needed, add enough olive oil to make one tablespoon of fat in the skillet and return to medium heat. Add onions and garlic to the pan and saute them until they’re translucent. Add celery, carrots, parsnips and turnips and sauté them they’re until tender.
4. Add reserved ground beef, tomato paste, thyme, peas and stock to the skillet. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Cook filling until the liquids evaporate, stirring occasionally. Remove from heat and cool.
5. In a medium saucepan, over low heat melt the butter and the half and half potatoes. Add the potatoes and gently mash potatoes with a potato masher until they are smooth and creamy. Season with salt and white pepper to taste. The mashed potatoes should be cool to the touch when you pipe them.
6. Place half of the potatoes in a large pastry bag fitted with a star or round piping tip
7. Preheat oven to 350°.
8. Prepare a baking tray by spraying or brushing with olive oil. Place mushroom caps on the baking tray and spray or lightly brush with olive oil. If using a brush make sure you brush the bottoms of the mushrooms as well.
9. Fill mushroom caps with shepherds pie filling with a teaspoon, pressing the filling in gently, taking care not to break the mushroom. Filling should be level with the top edge of the mushroom. Do not overfill or mound the filling.
10. Pipe mashed potatoes over the shepherds pie filling, starting from the outside, in circles, until you get to the center.
11. Sprinkle the top of each mushroom with grated cheese (about a 1/2 to 1 teaspoon). Press cheese gently so it sticks to the mashed potatoes.
12. Bake the mushroom caps until the cheese is golden brown, about 20 minutes.