Crock Pot Sheperds Pie Recipe

On Thursday this week the weather was beautiful so I planned a trip out to the new wildlife zoo. I wanted to make sure I didn’t have to fuss over dinner when we got back so before we left I put together a crock pot sheperds pie. This Sheperd’s Pie recipe is a little different than most though. It uses ground chicken (which I replaces with ground turkey since I couldn’t find any ground chicken at the grocery store) and butternut squash.

This takes a little more preparation than most of the crock pot dishes I make (which is usually throw everything in frozen and turn it on, but it was worth it!

Step 1: Make a squash puree.

You can do this in the microwave or in the oven. I chose to do it in the oven because squash just never comes out right for me in the microwave.

Halve a butternut squash (you could use any kind of squash you have on hand really)
Seed the squash
Place it flesh side down on a plate (for microwave) cover with plastic wrap
Microwave for 8 to 12 minutes on high.

to roast in the oven

halve and seed
put in roasting pan flesh side UP
add enough water to the pan so it comes up about 1 inch on the squash
bake at 400 for 30 to 60 minutes.

For both methods:

let cool
Scoop out the flesh and puree in food processor or mash with a masher

Add 1 tbsp brown sugar (packed)
and 2 tbsp butter
mix well

Step 2:  Put together your Sheperd’s Pie

Here’s what you’ll need:

2 lbs ground chicken (or turkey) (I only used 1 two would’ve been better)
1 onions chopped finely
2 cloves of garlic (minced)
1bag frozen corn and peas
1/2 cup water
2 tbsp dried parsley
2 tsp worcestershire sauce
1 tsp dried thyme
1 tsp paprika
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper
4 cups pureed squash

Here’s what you do:

Put the raw ground chicken/turkey on the bottom of the crock pot. Just spread it out so it covers the whole bottom.

Sprinkle all the spices on top of the meat.

Chop the onions and garlic and layer on top of the meat.

Layer on the frozen carrots and peas. (You could add some frozen corn too if the mood strikes you).

Add the water.

Cover the frozen veggies with the squash puree.

Cover your crockpot and cook on low for 6 to 8 hours. If you’re in a bit of a hurry you can cook on high for 3 to 4 hours.

Yum.

This recipe was modified from a recipe in my favorite crockpot cookbook. 300 Slow Cooker Favorites by Donna-Marie Pye. It is my GO TO crockpot cookbook. I love it!