Ever have one of those days that you have the strangest cravings?  The kind where you don’t know where the thought came from, but you just have to have it?  Well, for me it was one of those days.  For some reason unknown to me I was craving a Shepherd’s Pie. 
A Shepherd’s Pie, also known as a Cottage Pie, is a layered, British casserole traditionally made with ground meat, mixed with vegetables and topped with mashed potatoes. Though labeled a pie, it does not require dough or a pie crust.

Now I have only had one or two my whole entire life so I didn’t know why I suddenly wanted one.  I scoured the internet and came across a couple of recipes.  Each didn’t have what I was looking for.  I decided to just make one up myself. 
I like the fact that Shepherd’s Pie has vegetable in it, but wanted to use some of the vegetable in our refrigerator that looked like they were going to expire soon – not the traditional vegetables you would use in a Shepherd’s Pie.  I added various spices, carrots, peas, corn, yellow peppers, green peppers and onions to the standard meat mixture.  In the potatoes on top I added a bit of cheddar cheese.
All in all the pie was tasty yet not the same a traditional Shepherd’s Pie would be. I loved the fact that I could work off of what I remember of the pie when I had last eaten it and that I could do it without a recipe. It is definitely one dish that I am going to keep in mind for future dinners.