[shepherd's pie] but not as we know it, jim

I’m reminded, ensconced at Welshcakes’ domicile, of Prince Philip who was quoted as saying:

I never see any home cooking. All I get is fancy stuff.

See what you think and before I begin, Welshcakes wishes to issue a warning that if the Jailhouse Lawyer makes any snide remarks about the fare above, he can go forth and multiply [but not in those words].

So here is the scene:

‘Would you like some Shepherd’s Pie,’ asked WCL, expecting the answer yes. So she began preparing one a la Madhur Jaffrey but I can tell you the light hand of Welshcakes was quite discernible throughout.

The aubergines were sliced and griddled first as their olive oil soaking propensities have been swell documented. These were then left to one side.

Next came the taties, boiled whole until only just soft and these also were put to one side, to be sunflower oiled later. Yours truly sliced the tomatoes and then the taties.

Now came the Great Mystery – the case of the disappearing nutmeg. We searched high and low, inside cupboards and outside but drew a blank and decided to go without it. Imagine Welshcakes’ amazement when some hours later there it was, the bottle, sitting right under our noses in one of the cupboards we’d checked.

She still insists it was one of my practical jokes but I swear it wasn’t. Instead I insist back that it is not unlike the case of the credit card in the car. No matter – back to the Shepherd’s Pie.

One large onion, seven cloves of garlic, parsley and a good sized piece of fresh ginger needed to be Moulinexed and then added to three tablespoons of sunflower oil in the large wok until the onion was transparent. The mince then went in with chopped green chilli [which we didn’t have so Welshcakes used her own special mix], turmeric powder, a little salt and gradually, four tablespoons of water judged by the meat.

The mix was stirred until the meat was browned, then covered and left simmering for 45 mins. Next came the all spice, thyme, nutmeg and a little black pepper.

Now a baking dish needed to be oiled and lined with the aubergine strips, followed by a layer of sliced tomatoes, seasoned with salt, black pepper and thyme, then the sliced, cooked potato, brushed with oil and seasoned one last time.

Welshcakes now added her own little touch with a pinch of oregano. Not to be outdone, I was all for adding some rosemary which we picked from the balcony and it added that special something.

The whole thing was then bunged in the oven for about 40 minutes and Roberto was then most certainly our uncle. Now that was what I called a Shepherd’s Pie and I have to nip off now to eat the second half this evening.

Of course, we haven't even mentioned the exquisite lemon ice-cream cake for afters, which melts in the mouth but that will have to wait for another post.