You know what’s great? Shepherd’s Pie. You know what else is great? Potato skins. You know what’s even better? Combining the two.
Honestly, I don’t need to write much here. You know how it goes already. You bake some potatoes, you scoop out the insides, you cook up some meat with some spices, you fill the potato skins with meat and top them with potato, you bake it, and you eat it. It’s a lot like individual shepherd’s pies, in the potato skins themselves instead of ramekins.
My recipe used four large potatoes and a full point of ground beef, and the proportions worked out perfectly. You’ll probably need to adjust a little depending on the size of your potatoes, so you could end up with a little extra filling. That’s fine, it’s delicious, you just need to find another way to eat it.
I added bacon to mine and it was a great idea, but one thing I left out was cheese. I do think adding in a layer of cheese, probably under the potato, would be delicious as well. You could also go full loaded spud for your potato skins here, and mix in stuff like chives and cheese with the potatoes if you want. I kept it more of a basic shepherd’s pie recipe instead. Maybe next time!
If you want to make the nice frilled dollops on top like I did, you’ll need a piping bag with a large tip to do it. If you don’t care about presentation, you can also just spoon it all on top, it doesn’t really matter.
Want to make your own shepherd’s pie potato skins? Here’s how:
Shepherd’s Pie Potato Skins
Equipment
- Baking Sheet
- Potato Masher
- Piping Bag Optional
- Skillet
Ingredients
- 2 Lbs Russet Potatoes About four large taters.
- 4 Tbsp Butter
- ⅓ Cup Heavy Cream
- ½ Cup Grated Parmesan
- ½ Tsp Salt
- ½ Tsp Garlic Powder
- 1 Onion
- 1 Lb Ground Beef
- 2 Tsp Parsley
- 1 Tsp Rosemary
- 1 Tsp Thyme
- ½ Tsp Salt
- ¼ Tsp Pepper
- 1 Tbsp Worcestershire Sauce
- 3 Cloves Garlic
- 2 Tbsp Flour
- 1 Tbsp Tomato Paste
- 1 Cup Beef Broth
- ¼ Cup Bacon Bits
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 425℉. Wash and dry your potatoes.2 Lbs Russet Potatoes
- Poke each potato all over with a fork and place on your baking sheet. Bake for 45-60 minutes, until soft and easily pierced with a fork or knife.
- While the potatoes are cooking, bake your bacon bits. I chop a few slices of bacon into small bits and cook them that way, stirring continually so they cook evenly.
- In your skillet (either after the bacon, draining most of the grease, or in a separate skillet with a bit of oil), cook your onion until translucent.1 Onion
- Add in the beef, parsley, rosemary, thyme, salt, and pepper, stir, and cook until the meat is browned.1 Lb Ground Beef, 2 Tsp Parsley, 1 Tsp Rosemary, 1 Tsp Thyme, ½ Tsp Salt, ¼ Tsp Pepper
- Add in the Worcestershire sauce and garlic, and cook for another couple of minutes to let the garlic become aromatic.1 Tbsp Worcestershire Sauce, 3 Cloves Garlic
- Add in the flour and tomato paste. Stir to combine and make sure no clumps of flour remain.2 Tbsp Flour, 1 Tbsp Tomato Paste
- Finally, add the broth, bacon, and any other fillings you want to use, like frozen veggies. Bring this all to a boil, then simmer for about 5 minutes, stirring occasionally. Then, set it aside while you prep your potatoes.1 Cup Beef Broth, ¼ Cup Bacon Bits
- Cut the potatoes in half lengthwise. Carefully scoop out the insides, but be sure not to tear the skins.
- Mash the scooped-out potato with a masher (or fork). Add in the butter, heavy cream, salt, Parmesan, and garlic powder. Mix this all together until it's creamy, and adjust spices to taste.4 Tbsp Butter, ⅓ Cup Heavy Cream, ½ Cup Grated Parmesan, ½ Tsp Salt, ½ Tsp Garlic Powder
- Spoon meat filling into each potato skin, the pipe or scoop potato mix over the top. Bake this at 350℉ for another 15-20 minutes to heat it all through, then enjoy!