Shepherd's Pie

Shepherd's pie is a savory British dish of minced meat, traditionally lamb or mutton, topped with a layer of mashed potato and baked until browned. The related dish made with beef instead of lamb is usually called cottage pie, though the two names have often been used interchangeably since both terms came into use in the late eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries; the word cottage pie was recorded first, in 1791, with shepherd's pie appearing later in the nineteenth century. The dish grew out of the long-standing English cook's practice of using mashed potato as a pie topping over minced or leftover meat rather than a pastry crust. In Australia, Canada and the United States, shepherd's pie is now commonly used as a general term for any minced meat baked under mashed potato, regardless of the meat, and vegetarian and vegan versions are also made today.