Double Decker Shepherds Pie

I saw this recipe and thought it looked interesting, because it is a spin on a traditional shepherd's pie which I love so much. I had so many peppers from the garden I needed to use I thought this would be the time to try it out. After I made it Brian was skeptical because he said it had a lot of "carbs". Yep it does, but I am a carb lover=). We both really enjoyed this meal, I did even more so than I imagined. This is a keeper for sure!

Ingredients

• 2 1/2 lbs baking potatoes peeled and diced
• 1 cup heavy cream
• salt and pepper
• 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
• 8 ounce package of mushrooms. Caps quartered and stems chopped
• 1 lb ground turkey meat (or lean ground beef if you prefer)
• 1 bunch scallions, white portion thinly chopped and green portion thinly sliced
• 1 large poblano pepper, or whatever pepper you prefer. ( I used one from the garden, keep seeds if you like heat)

Directions

Position a rack in the upper third of the oven and preheat to 425°. In a saucepan, combine the potatoes with salted water to cover by 1 inch. Bring to a boil and cook until tender, 12 to 15 minutes. Drain, reserving 1 cup of the cooking water; return the potatoes to the pot. Mash with the cream until smooth; season with salt.

In a large nonstick skillet, heat the olive oil over high heat. Add the mushrooms and cook, stirring occasionally, until golden, about 5 minutes; transfer to a plate. Crumble the beef evenly across the pan and cook, undisturbed, until the liquid cooks off and the meat begins to brown, 3 to 4 minutes. Lower the heat to medium and stir in the finely chopped scallions, the poblano, 1 teaspoon salt and 1/2 teaspoon pepper; cook, stirring, for 2 minutes. Stir in the reserved mushrooms, 1/4 cup mashed potatoes and the reserved 1 cup cooking water. Lower the heat and simmer until the juices are thickened, about 3 minutes. Season with salt and pepper.

Spread slightly more than half of the potatoes evenly in a greased 9-by-11-inch baking dish. Spoon the meat mixture evenly on top, then spoon the remaining mashed potatoes evenly across the filling to enclose. Bake until lightly golden, 20 to 25 minutes. Sprinkle with the sliced scallions; let stand for 10 minutes before serving.