Cuban Shepard's Pie

I really love one pot meals. It makes it so much easier to make a larger meal and portion out the leftovers for the week. We also tend to put some in the freezer for later too, so we end up cooking less often. My best paleo tip would really be to double your recipe, and put half in the fridge portioned out, and half in the freezer. Then you make about 3 meals and do the same for all, and then you have a bigger variety of stuff to eat for the next 1-2 weeks. Nothing is worse, in my mind, than eating the same meal for 4 days in a row. I'd much rather have some variety, which is where a lot of my meals come from.

Plantains are a really interesting flavor, and I've made a few dishes in the past with them. This actually has a similar taste profile to a dish I made before (Plantain Lasanga), but it was a lot easier! This definitely looks like a shepard's pie, but instead of a cauliflower or potato topping, why not try it with plantains?

My grocery store only sells green plantains, so I had to wait about 10 days for these to ripen up in order to use them. That way they are a tiny bit sweeter than the green ones, and work well with the spiced meat bottom layer.

You can make the Sofrito mixture using the below link, or just use tomato sauce for the whole thing and it'll still be delicious! Or add in a chopped onion and/or a chopped pepper to the mix if you have some on hand.

Ingredients

1) 2 pounds of ground beef (or bison/chicken/turkey/etc)

2) 4-5 very ripe plantains (about 1.5-2 pounds)

3) 1/4 cup of coconut or almond milk

4) 2 cups of tomato sauce (or 1 cup tomato sauce, and 1 cup homemade Sofrito -- recipe here)

*Sofrito is really just pureed tomatoes, onions, and peppers

5) Spices: I did 1 tablespoon of cumin, 1 teaspoon of turmeric and 1 teaspoon of salt

**Makes 5-6 servings

Instructions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

1) Over medium heat, brown your ground meat. Once cooked, you can drain some of the oil if your meat was too fatty for your liking.    

Browning your meat

2) Add your tomato sauce/sofrito and spices to your meat, and mix thoroughly.

Adding your sauce and spices

3) Pour your meat mixture into a 13x9 pan. This is the bottom layer of your shepard's pie.

Bottom half complete

4) Now work on your plantain topping. Peel your plantains and roughly chop, then add to your food processor.

Super-ripe plantains

Ready for the food processor

5) Add your coconut milk to the food processor with your plantains and blend until smooth.

Pureed plantains and coconut milk

6) Pour your pureed plantains on top of your meat layer and spread evenly.

Adding your topping

Ready for the oven!

7) Bake at 350 for 45 minutes until your plantain topping is firm when you touch it.

All cooked up

Lovely layers of Cuban Shepard's Pie

8) Let rest for a few minutes to cool, and then eat up!