Dinner Tonight: Shepherd’s Pie
Last week, I was driving down the road with the girls, doing some last-minute grocery shopping and listening to Christmas music when a commercial came on. Lulu had just pointed out that she “hates” Christmas music. She’s getting coal in her stocking. Which makes shopping a cinch.
The commercial was for Hellman’s Mayonnaise and the voiceover was by Mark Consuelos. I like to say Spanish words and names in a full Spanish accent, mostly because the only people who don’t sound like complete jack asses when they do so are native Spanish speakers. And I kind of get a kick out of sounding like a complete jack ass. Plus, Pea Daddy loves it.
You know who Mark Con-sooouelos is, right? He’s married to Kelly Ripa, who somehow inherited her own talk show by just waiting for her predecessor to get really old. Jackpot.
I keep hoping Gelman will call me and offer me the co-hosting job, but then I remember that he doesn’t have a clue who I am and then there’s that “I kind of get a kick out of sounding like a complete jack ass” thing. Also complicating matters is the fact that that if I stood next to Kelly Ripa, I would look like I was going to eat her. Kind of like Senior Prom. (I had eight inches on my date and at least 30 pounds. He was delicious.)
But back to Mark Con-soooo-hhhaylos. He came on the radio after Whitney’s “Do You Hear What I Hear?” to suggest how to get rid of all my Thanksgiving leftovers. Are you ready for his Earth shattering recipe?
Here it is:
Mix a cup of Hellman’s Mayonaise into a big bowl filled with all of your Thanksgiving leftovers and bake it in the oven. All of it. Turkey, mashed potatoes, stuffing, sweet potatoes, cranberries and mayo. Baked.
No thank you, Mr. Con-sooo-hhhay-llllllos. I have my own ideas.
Shepherd’s Pie
Makes 4-6 servings
- 1/2 c. onion, chopped
- 2 ribs celery, sliced
- 1 c. chopped carrots
- 2 T. flour of your choice (whole wheat pastry, oat, etc.)
- 1 c. vegetable broth
- 1 c. leftover gravy
- salt and pepper to taste
- 1/2 teaspoon poultry seasoning
- 1 c. frozen peas
- 2 c. diced leftover cooked Tofurky*
- 1-1 1/2 c. leftover Roasted Garlic Smashed Potatoes
- 1/2 c. non-dairy (i.e. Daiya) or organic cheddar cheese
*substitution ideas:
- One 14 oz. can of chickpeas, drained and rinsed
- 2 c. prebaked tofu, cubed
- 2 c. broccoli florets, lightly blanched
- 2 c. crumbled tempeh, cooked up in the pan with your veggies
- 2 c. leftover cooked grains, i.e. wild rice, quinoa, millet, etc.
Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
Place a large skillet over medium high heat after lightly spritzing it with cooking spray or oil. Add onion, carrot and celery and sauté for 4-5 minutes, until veggies are tender.
Sprinkle in flour and poultry seasoning and stir until vegetables are evenly coated.
Pour in vegetable stock and heat until thickened, stirring constantly.
Add leftover gravy, peas, and chopped Tofurky (or substitute) and heat through.
Pour filling into a casserole dish that has been lightly sprayed with cooking spray or oil.
Top with mashed potatoes.
And sprinkle with cheese.
Bake for 25-30 minutes, until bubbly and cheese is melted.
Now this is comfort food.
The Tofurky is fine, the veggies are crisp, the potatoes are creamy, the cheese is gooey, but you know what makes this?
The gravy.
Totally the gravy.
I’d go as far as saying it’s worth keeping a jar in your fridge at all times just for this purpose.
You can keep your Hellman’s, Mr. Con-sooo-hghk-llllos! I’ve got my leftover solution covered.
P.S. Gelman, call me.
My hubby made something like this Friday night, and it was so good (Including gravy!). We weren’t sure if tofu would work in it, so we omitted it and called it gardner’s pie =) This will be the next version we try though, looks great!
Your hubby is genius.
hahah mayo leftover casserole?!! Yuck!! I will take this pie any day!!
And I think anyone standing next to Mrs. Ripa would look like a giant
I know, I kind of did a spit take when I heard that mayo recipe. Only I wasn’t drinking anything.
I made your roasted garlic smashed potatoes and gravy for my family’s Thanksgiving and they were a huge hit! I can’t wait to make this shepherds pie with the leftovers.
I’m kind of with Lulu on most Christmas music. Guess I will also be getting coal in my stocking.
That’s okay, I totally burnt myself out on Christmas music already, so I guess I get coal too.
Mmmm!!!! I made your Indian shepherds pie for thankgiving. It was a MAJOR hit!!!
That’s great to hear! I love that version, too.
I have to agree with Lulu, I also hate Christmas music. Don’t hate me!
But I *do* love this shepherd’s pie recipe. Any excuse to eat melted cheese is pretty awesome.
I hear you. I mean, I Hear What You Hear….
Haha, your wit does not go unnoticed, Mama Pea.
It does around here…
I heard that “Consuelos” ad on the radio, and was pretty much disgusted by the idea! Throwing up in my mouth a little bit…
This also makes me think of an SNL skit where they’re speaking English, but break into a full-on Spanish accent every time they say a word in Spanish. Hilarious!
Poor Mark. I wonder if he really wants to be hocking mayo.
Looks and sounds delicious!
YIKES…that idea from mr. consuelos sounds a little disgusting…but i’m making shepherd’s pie tonight!
and i love saying spanish words with the correct accent…i may not be totally bilingual, but i didn’t spend 13 years studying the language to say stuff like a gringo
Ha ha ha…I love that you do that with Spanish too. I’m excited to see your version of shepherd’s pie!
I have never ever had Shepherd’s pie but I can’t wait to try this. Sounds/looks delicious.
I only like classic Christmas music, Bing, Nat, Frank, Dean, etc. With a little bit of Michael Buble and a handful of Mariah. In my classroom, we play a Christmas pandora station that features Big Band Christmas and it’s always adorable when they realize it’s Christmas music without the words.
Oh you must make shepherd’s pie! It’s delightful! I totally agree with you on the Christmas music. When Wham! and Wings come on, I turn the station without hesitation.
MIxing a CUP of mayonaise with anything sounds like the grossest idea ever. Mr. Consuelos just lost a ton of bonus points from me. I do the accent thing with Italian words, trying to channel my inner Giada.
The only thing worse than cold mayonnaise is hot mayonnaise.
Ew, I hate even seeing the word mayonaise! GROSS! But…. your leftovers have me hungry!
Mayonnaise, mayonnaise, mayonnaise!!!! Sorry.
I think I just gagged a little at the thought of mixing everything with mayonnaise.
This looks delicious! Well worth starting from “the beginning” since I don’t have any leftovers!
I absolutely plan on starting from the beginning and making this again!
That recipe Mark said on the radio doesn’t sound appealing in the least bit. However, your creation looks delicious and screams comfort food to me as well! Yum!
I’m like you and always put my Spanish/Latin/Mexican accent on words! Glad to know I’m not alone!
Have a great day!!!
Thanks! Hope you have a good one too!
Barf-a-roni to the Hellman’s idea. My Tofurkys came with gravy this year (and we are not especially fans of Turtle Island’s gravy), but the best Tofurky recipe to date had a dark beer baste that formed a crust on the Tofurkys and the rest of it went in the gravy which then ROCKED! Xingu Black Beer was used-sweeter-milder-less bitter.
See my leftovers here
http://veggieteach.wordpress.com/2011/11/24/im-stuffed/
Tofurky recipe here
http://www.meettheshannons.net/2011/11/betty-crocker-project-thanksgiving-day.html
Oh my gosh, awesome! Thanks so much…I love the beer basting idea. I appreciate the links!
All your leftovers baked in with mayo? That’s the most disgusting thing I’ve heard lately.
Your dish looks and sounds far better {even though I’d have to substitute tofu and peas)
Fair enough, Cindy, fair enough
That cracks me up that Lulu said she hates Christmas music. I’ll go out on a limb and say I have about a 1 hour tolerance for it..so by Halloween (with as early as the retailers start playing it), I’ve usually had my fill for the year
This Shepard’s Pie…I need my fill of that.
Hope you all had a great Thanksgiving!
Yup, I started playing it way too early and am completely burned out. Hope you had a nice holiday too!
this reminds me of a the leftover challenge from top chef. what they made looked kind of gross. i am not into leftovers at all i’ve realized. my husband is though. lucky me i never have to deal with many of them. but i am sure TONS of families have leftovers and would really appreciate this idea.
Mark Consuelos is a cutie pie! Mark Sanchez of the New York Jets is pretty easy on the eyes too! Mile High Mark is flattered that my celebrity crushes are both named Mark, and I don’t ever have to worry about accidentally calling him the wrong name. Oh, and the Shepards pie is drool worthy as well!
Well, hello, Jamie!!! How can we say Mile High Mark with a Spanish flair now…? I agree, both Marks, like this Shepherd’s Pie, are delicious. I’ll leave you to your Mark now
Wow, that has to be the most disgusting recipe ever. Mark’s, not yours! How does that even get approved? Insanity.
And your gravy recipe totally won over everyone at Thanksgiving. Well everyone except Aubrey who said “yup, tastes just like gravy, blech.” But all the normal people and I loved it! And I made it up to him for making him eat gravy – your nacho Mmm sauce is now made and ready for him to enjoy.
Ha ha, I thought you were talking about mine for a minute
I’m glad all the “normal people” loved the gravy. So good! Just like the Nacho Mmmm!
YUM. I wonder if I could fake out my Brit with this one…
You will have report back on that one. Tell him I said late Happy Birthday! I tried to comment on your sweet post last week but your site was having troubles
Shepherd’s Pie was my childhood favourite dinner!! I’m feeling nostalgic now, and really wanting Shepherd’s Pie
mmmmmmm and I love that you used Thanksgiving leftovers to make it!
P.S. Mark Con-sooo-hhhay-llllllos is a sexy man
But I don’t want a cup of mayo in my dinner.
You can do this!!!
I plan to!
I’ll take your vegan leftover feast over mayo any day. I don’t care how sexy Mark Consuelos is.
I don’t know….if he was serving, the choice might not be so easy.
Shhhh don’t tell my boyfriend
Bahahahahahaa, I think anyone worth their salt says Spanish names with a Spanish accent. Mandatory. Your left over idea could not sound any more delicious than Marks, even if it tried. Awesome sauce (or gravy, as the case may be…) I think you would be awesome on the talk show with Kelly! Regis actually made me want to die watching him… I am glad he finally let it go. He was awesome back in the day though!
I’m just grinning because you said, “Awesome sauce.”
I do what I can Mama.
Beautiful photos! Your photography skills could make any food look amazing!
Ha ha, thanks! Yes, this one was a little challenging to not have it look like slop
Stop it!! She hates Christmas music?! I’ve been listening to it since October!!
Recipe looks great, as usual.
Question though: Why would you look like you were going to eat Kelly Ripa if you stood next to her? I mean sure, you’re taller than her; but then you mention the pounds. If pictures and your videos are anything to go by, you are about as thin as her.
Oh, I meant my prom date. It’s just awkward to outweigh your date. Nothing to do with thin or not thin…he was a lil’ guy
Ah, thank you for clarifying.
And I suppose Lulu is too young (or too smart) to be among those gushing over Christmas music in the form of Justin Bieber’s “under the mistletoe?”
No prob.
She might be into the Bieb’s Christmas. Or even The Chipmunks. Lord help me.
Thank you for making this!! I have been hoping for a vegetarian shepherds pie recipe from you for a long time. I totally know what I’m making on St. Pattys day now!
And oh no, I hope Lulu wont always hate Christmas music. There’s something so special and magical about it!
I think she just didn’t want to listen to it before Thanksgiving. Fair enough!
This looks fantastic and soo very tasty. I love the innovative-ness of your recipes! Bet it would work just as well with all the Field Roast loaf I have left over…
Yup, totally!!!
Ahahaahah EW. Girl, I would MUCH rather eat yours!!!!!
p.s. I hate mayonnaise.
Me too. Even Veganaise.
that mayonnaise recipe sounds revolting. I actually gagged a little bit in my moth when I read that.
Me too. Sorry about that.
and I apologize for the typo. I gagged into my “mouth,” not on a “moth.”
I enjoy sounding ass’ish as well – it just makes life more fun.
And I am down with this leftover thanksgiving meal.
I just threw up a little in my mouth at the sound of that commercial recipe… baked mayo and leftovers… puke. On the other hand, your shepherd’s pie sounds delicious
Why thanks! (I think…)
haha yes it was meant to be a compliment
Oh my. I was nauseous at the “one cup” portion of mayo. Can that really be considered the start to a delicious leftover meal?!
My mistake…it was 3/4 c. mayo:
http://www.acmemarkets.com/viewrecipe?recipeId=68693
Oooh! I’ve never even heard of a Shepher’d Pie with cheese before! Nom nom nom.
I love how you had leftovers. The only leftovers that were not demolished by the end of breakfast the next day were turkey (which I did not partake in, which in turn offended my husband) and some potatoes that everyone thought were amazing but were really just mashed potatoes.
We saw a mayo commercial that grossed me out so horribly that I nearly had a terrible kitchen accident. It was for Best Foods, Hellman’s AKA. I’m not sure why mayo makes everyone swoon. Unless it’s because they all have food poisoning. I have never liked it. Blarggggggh!
But beyond that, I wish we had real leftovers – this sounds tasty!
This would be worth making leftovers for
Hope you guys had a great holiday!
I just want to tell you that I made this tonight and it was sooo yummy! We used leftover Great Grains sausage instead of Tofurkey because I am not a fan of Tofurkey. Kudos to you! The whole family loved it and went back for seconds!
We decided we aren’t a fan of Tofuky either…next year we’ll have to try something else. But I’m glad you liked the recipe!
what a great idea to top the pie with grated cheese!!
And I love gravy. I love it so so much, in fact, when I made stuffing for Thanksgiving, I ate about 3 spoonfulls before adding the gravy to the bread/veggie mixture
I thought that commercial was a joke at first. When I realized it wasn’t, I threw up in my mouth a little bit. Gross. As a side note, Bronwen ate a pickle today. I was so proud.
That a girl!!!!
This looks delish! Another mama pea win!
Well, this Mike’s Mayo recipe…..G.R.O.S.S.!! Now, I have been known to eat very strange combos of foods, but this one….Nope, no way! Two things come to mind, 1) a goopy mess, 2) call the doc cuz I’m gonna be SICK! I prefer your recipe, a millions more than ‘his’. And, now all this talking is making me think I shall quickly make your dish for lunch. Thanks for another life saver.
Hope you love it!
From the Ripley’s file…when I clicked onto the site, the top banner advert was about Kelly Ripa and something about submittng a leftover recipe for a chance to win an Electrolux product. Wonder what the Vegas line on that was?? Interesting spin on how Kelly got her own show. Moral of the story – work with folks who are much, much older than you are and always pronounce words in their intended language. I’m French and I do my best with the English language but still can’t pronounce Veganaise without curling my lips like Billy Idol.
Merci pour vos recettes – they warm my little GF, Vegan heart.
De nada.
Wait, that isn’t right.
Well i’m afraid of Kelly Ripa and I don’t like shepherd’s pie as much as *shepherd* pie, which is just a bunch of shepherds mixed in with some mayonniase, but I just had to tell you when I was reading about Mr. Consuheyyyloos your accent was so convincing that when I got to “senior prom” I read it as “senyor (as in a spanish mister) prom” and I had to think, “Who is senor Prom? When did he stand next to Kelly Ripa?” I love it, senora pea!
LOL! Senor prom! Hola, senor prom!
This sounds AWESOME- I’m totally making this sometime this week. And for the record, it would be totally fine with me if you devoured Kelly Ripa and took her place. Now SHE is a jack asserton. IMHO.
And now I have a new favorite word….
I cracked up over your prom line. In my pictures from my junior prom I am hunched over at a weird angle so that I appear to be the same height as my date.
At least you thought to hunch. I just tower awkwardly.
Shepherd’s Pie used to be a favorite. And it was ALWAYS about the gravy. Can’t wait to try your’s.
PS — Someone told me my sweet potato cake tasted like “Grandma’s mayonnaise pie”. It was a compliment. I gagged behind my sweet smile.
Mmmm….I dream about Grandma’s mayonnaise pie….
This recipea sounds awesome except you are making the huge assumption that any of that incredible gravy or mashed potatoes is left! lol! My husband was in charge of making the gravy so I had fixed up our plates with a couple of slices of Field Grain Roast, the mashed potatoes and some roasted asparagus – he then poured a SEA of gravy all over everything. I was laughing to myself thinking of your Thanksgiving stories of just that with the men in your family.
But, it was so awesome, we had it for dinner again the next night. YUMMMM! Thank you MP!
Ha ha ha. I’m so glad you guys liked the gravy
This was our first Vegan big holiday… no tofurkey…that little bird scares me. We did make Post Punk Kitchen’s Chickpea cutlets. Yummo. Anyhoo. All our leftovers have been consumed. The last was some “stuffing” and veg mashed potatoes smashed together with some flaxseed egg and fried latke style. They were pretty tasty, but I was starving at the time. Ha. Ha.
I love accents, too. My friend does messed up French, Spanish and Asian and cracks me up every time. Ha. Ha. Her husband speaks Spanish as a first language and they had a foreign exchange student from Japan. She told some awesome stories about communication failures. Ha. Ha. The best was when the student came into the kitchen, with a very puzzled look on her face, asked for a boob. My friend about choked on her coffee. Turns out the host dad had asked her to find a broom. Ha. Ha. Ha.
I’ve always wanted to try those cutlets!
Pass the boob, please.
Oh gosh, this sounds awesome! I *will* be trying this.
Hilarious. I was ALWAYS a head taller than all the boys. Tall and awkward, that was me. Made school so much fun.
You gotta give the guy credit for asking me to prom (not that I was cool or anything). Clearly height meant nothing to him.
I wonder where he is now…and how tall he got
I do too! I ran into his brother a couple years ago. I should really try to find him on Facebook
What a fantastic shepherd’s pie. Did you know (and this is indeed random trivia) Mark and Kelly met while filming All My Children (soap opera)? True story and completely useless as far as information goes.
I did know, but that’s only because I used to watch All My Children religiously. I had a huge crush on Tad when he was with Dixie, back in the day.
I heard that commercial awhile ago too, and pretty sure I threw up a little. REALLY?? mayonnaise with all your leftovers thrown in a pot and bake it? I’d rather eat tofu. And you know me, Mama Pea, that’s saying something.
Hope you guys had a great Thanksgiving, Kel!
Hellman’s = grody
Shepherd’s pie = win
The shepherd’s pie I made last year on Christmas was my Dad’s fave dish I’ve ever made him. This from an intense skeptic of vegan diets. I’m so happy to see your recipe, which looks wonderful.
Happy (belated) thanksgiving, my dear!
That’s awesome, Gen. So happy to see you made it home to NYC this year. Hugs to you!
You should totally go and co-host with Kelly for a day… how fun would that be?! And you can show Mark Consueeellllos just how it’s done. This shepards pie looks GOOD!
That’s sounds like a weird leftover recommendation. Doesn’t sound very enticing either. I’m looking at making/freezing some split pea soup.
And this shepherd’s pie you have going looks like a mighty fine idea, too. 
It must have been a day for Shepherd’s Pie…I made the one out your book and the family loved it! That’s huge since most of the time they all turn their noses up at anything labeled Vegetarian or Vegan!
Awesome, Mary. I love that one too!
mayo has always majorly freaked me out. not sure why, but it does… and a mayo casserole just sounds scary! I love your version of leftovers! unfortunately I was at my in-laws and so while everyone else ate traditional Thanksgiving (including scary green bean casserole that is grey and not green and cranberries in a can) I had my traditional Thanksgiving meal… baked acorn squash and kale salad. There were no leftovers
You should make my green bean casserole next year
And cranberries too!
Hey MamaPea,
I just ordered 5 copies of your book to give out to friends and family for Christmas (and obvi one for me too). I am trying to eat less meat and your book will be a perfect way to start!
Hallie, you rock! Thanks so much!
Lulu and I have yet another thing in common… I too despise Christmas music. Ugh.
“I had eight inches on my date and at least 30 pounds.” I am 5’9” and weigh… a lot. I dated a guy for 2 1/2 years who was 5’4” and 120 lbs soaking wet. Never again if I can help it.
Ha ha ha…I’m sorry, but also feel good, that you can relate to the awkwardness…
I had to admit, the mayo dish sounds amazing to me. (hanging my head in shame) However – this sounds amazing too! Thanks for the recipe.
Hey, to each her own. And I have a feeling you’d get that whole mayo casserole all to yourself
The mayo casserole sounds like what they did at the hospital for leftovers. lol. I always pack my lunch but some of the ladies had something on their plate resembling everything on a Thanksgiving table mixed into a casserole with a blob of cranberry on top!
Yuck! Your story about the Spanish words reminds me of my dad. lol. He always tries to order his Mexican food with the proper accent and always just butchers it. It is hilarious.
My mom just yells. Like somehow people who don’t speak English as their first language are also hearing impaired.
I made shepherd’s pie this week and decided on TVP for my protein (sometimes I even nix it all together and just do root veggies). I stay away from the faux cheese because of the ingredient list and top my Pie with homemade biscuits. Baked until golden brown it’s absolutely diiiiiiiivine! I highly recommend!