Welsh Rarebit Cottage Pie

This idea materialised whilst making a classic cottage pie, shortly after a beef and ale stew.  Cheese is often added to the mash in a cottage pie so why not go for the rarebit?  (Umami does tend to be a go to taste sensation for me and here we have it in spades!)

Ingredients

Beef mince base:

1 decent sized onion, chopped

2 stalks of celery, finely sliced

400g or 500g beef mince (up to 12% fat)

1-2 sprigs of fresh Thyme or 1 tsp dried

2 TBSP plain flour

1/2 tsp salt flakes and black pepper

1 TBSP tomato puree

Liquid:

250ml stout or dark ale

250ml beef stock

A few shakes of worcestershire sauce

Veges:

3 carrots, peeled and cut into batons

1 cup frozen peas

Mash:

4 medium potatoes (white like Maris Piper) peeled and diced

1/4 cup milk

1/2 cup grated mature cheddar

Butter to taste

1-2 tsp dijon mustard

White pepper

Method:

Fry onion and celery until onion is golden (low heat lid on).

Add beef, thyme and salt/pepper, fry until brown (medium to high heat). Don't worry about 'sticky bits.' 

Add flour and tomato puree, stir 1-2 minutes until combined.

Add carrots, stir 1-2 minutes

Add the liquids, stir and simmer for approx 25 minutes.

Make mash.

Add peas to the beef, top with mash and bake 25 minutes at 180C fan.

Embrace 'bubbly over'

Tip: you can make this as a 2 pot meal if the beef mixture is started in an oven safe casserole pot.