LittleRaf's Shepards Pie

Age appropriate : 5mnths +

with chicken....

I may have eaten mince meat before littleRaf came along, I sometimes still do, however when it comes to him I tried to avoid it at all costs.  I recommend that if you can take and extra 10mins out of your time, you should to.  Minced meat is made up of off-cuts of meat, together with alot of fat etc, it is so much easier to take a fresh cut of meat, put it into a blender/chopper and guess what you have minced meat.  At least in this case you know what is in it and the amount of fat that went into it too.

This week I didnt have any beef to make this shepards pie so we made it with chicken, I had never made this before, but boy oh boy it was delicious.  Mommy might have had some too for lunch, we didn't tell Dad, he would be very upset cause Shepard pie is his favorite too!  After yesterdays lunch time adventure I think its littleRafs favorite too!

What you will need:

2 medium sized potatoes.

1/2 chicken breast(skinless)

1 chicken thigh(skinless)

1 carrot

1 tomatoes

Some Fresh herbs ( used: marjoram)

1 tbsp of olive oil

2tbsp of passata - tomatoe juice

touch of black pepper

1 clove of garlic

1 handful of baby spinach

Some butter ( use margarine)

Some milk ( can use soy)

I THERE ARE ANY ALLERGIES TO DAIRY SUBSTITUTE THE BUTTER AND MILK WITH MARGARINE AND SOY MILK/RICE MILK ETC.

1. Place potatoes in a pot with water and cook.
2. In the meantime chop carrot and tomatoe  and chicken and place in blender/food processor together with herbs and mince it all up.
3. Drain the potatoes once cooked, mash as you would for mash potato, adding butter and milk for a smooth an creamy consistency. I used about 50 ml of milk and about 2cmx 2cm block of butter. Add a touch of white pepper and out it aside.
4. In a pan place olive oil and heat, add clove of garlic finely chopped, then add mince.  I HAVE USED ONLY HALF OF THIS MINCE FOR 3 SERVINGS, I HAVE FROZEN THE REST OF THE MINCE FOR ANOTHER MEAL.
5. Add mince to pan , and mix around in the pan without letting it stick to the pan, once it is almost cooked add passata to add a bit more moisture and flavor to the mince.
6. Remove the mince from the pan, add a handful of baby spinach and allow it to wilt in the pan, remove and chop finely.( You can add some water to assist with the wilting ).
7. Start by adding the chicken mince at the bottom of the ramekin, then a layer of spinach topped with a layer of mash potato.
8. Place ramekin in oven at 180deg for about 30min or until golden brown on top.

BEWARE: THESE COME OUT VERY HOT AT THE CENTRE, ALLOW TO COOL AND TEST THE FOOD BEFORE GIVING IT TO BABIES TO EAT.

These ramekins come in handy, as they are made of glass. They are freezer safe, as well as oven safe.  Pyrex makes them.  There are other alternatives like  foil pie dishes (small). 

Happy cooking! but most of all enjoy the time with your little ones today!