Comfort food is a necessity in life and it’s an ever evolving thing for me. It really changes on a daily basis for me. Last week I posted a pasta recipe because on that particular day, a big bowl of cheesy pasta was comfort for me. Today, I’m craving a big plate of mashed potatoes and MEAT! My Mashed Cauliflower Shepherd’s Pie has all the flavors and taste of the traditional recipe without the guilt. Savory, perfectly spiced meat and vegetables topped with a creamy, mashed cauliflower is true comfort! This is a Weight Watchers friendly recipe and only 2 SmartPoints per serving!!
Big news! My husband and I moved from Texas to Indianapolis in August 2016. That’s right…. We moved! This move was obviously a HUGE life event for us. We made the decision to move so that we could set our future up for success. Our quality of life has already significantly improved! Prior to our move, we decided to renovate the house we were moving into, which of course included the kitchen. And if you’ve ever renovated a house, you know it takes longer than the contractors estimate for the renovations to be completed. So, when we moved into our house the first week of August we didn’t have a functional kitchen for FOUR WEEKS. Not cooking for that long made me really sad y’all. But I’m happy to report that the renovations are complete and we have an amazing, better than I could have dreamed, kitchen!
Once my kitchen was done, I was ready to get back to MY comfort zone and get cooking. It was a hard decision to make on “what will be the first recipe I make in my new kitchen”. I decided to make this meal because I really needed something that was comforting and tastes like home. Shepherd’s Pie is something that I didn’t grow up eating but discovered recently in my cooking journey. It’s funny because I grew up eating these flavors, but not actually mixed together in one dish. When I had Shepherd’s Pie for the first time, I couldn’t believe I had never had it before. Savory, spiced meat and veggies topped with mashed potatoes…. Genius! There are a million different versions of this meat and potato pie; all have the basic fundamentals- meat, veggies, and potatoes.
I wanted to take this recipe a step towards the guilt-free side by swamping ground beef or lamp for ground turkey. To save time, I used frozen veggies. You could totally use fresh veggies, but sometimes it’s good to use short cuts! I also added in fresh baby bella mushrooms. I can just hear my mom say “Mushrooms?! Ehh”. Well, I love mushrooms so I added them in, but you can totally omit!! Lastly, to take it even further, I swamped mashed potatoes for my Garlic Mashed Cauliflower. Perfection! I know some of you might be saying “Cauliflower?!” I know… But cauliflower is so underrated! My Garlic Mashed Cauliflower seriously taste just like mashed potatoes.
For the Mashed Cauliflower Shepherd’s Pie recipe, I doubled the Garlic Mashed Cauliflower recipe to make sure I had enough to cover the pie. The great thing about this recipe is you can make all of the main ingredients way ahead of time! The recipe has several steps to follow but don’t worry, it’s easy to follow! I recommend making the Garlic Mashed Cauliflower first that way you have that part done.
To make the filling, in a large skillet brown lean ground turkey until it’s cooked, then remove from the skillet and set aside. Next, saute onion, celery, garlic, and mushrooms until tender. Add a little bit of flour, frozen vegetables, broth, Worcestershire sauce, tomato paste and cook for a few minutes. Add the cooked ground turkey, mix until well combined, and cook for another few minutes. Spray a casserole dish with cooking spray, pour the turkey mixture into the dish, and spread to an even layer. Then spread the Garlic Mashed Cauliflower on top into an even layer. Sprinkle the top with paprika and bake for 20 minutes.
Mashed Cauliflower Shepherd’s Pie has all the flavors and taste of the traditional recipe without the guilt. Savory, perfectly spiced meat and vegetables topped with a creamy, mashed cauliflower is true comfort! I’m happy to report that our first home cooked meal in Indianapolis was a success… My husband LOVED it and it will go down in history for sure! This version of Shepherd’s Pie is guaranteed to please. Guilt free with only 2 Weight Watchers SmartPoints per serving!!
I hope you enjoy these *meaty* bites of flavor!
Watch this 60 second video to learn how to make Mashed Cauliflower Shepherd’s Pie:
Serves 6
2 SMARTPOINTS per serving
30 minPrep Time
20 minCook Time
50 minTotal Time
Ingredients
- 2 Small Heads Cauliflower
- 2 Tablespoon Light Butter
- 2 Tablespoon Light Sour Cream
- 2 Cloves Garlic
- 1 Tablespoon Parmesan Cheese
- 1 Teaspoon Pepper, to taste
- 1 Teaspoon Salt, to taste
- 1 Pound 99% Lean Ground Turkey
- 1 Tablespoon Olive Oil
- ½ Small White Onion
- 2 Celery Stalks
- 2 Cloves Garlic
- 8 oz Sliced Bella Mushrooms (Omit if you do not like mushrooms!)
- 8 oz Frozen Vegetable Mix (Carrots, Peas, Corn, Green Beans)
- 2 Tablespoons White Whole Wheat Flour
- 1 Cup Vegetable Broth
- 2 Tablespoon Tomato Paste
- 1 Teaspoon Worcestershire Sauce
- 1 Teaspoon Paprika
- 1 Tablespoon Salt
- 1 Tablespoon Pepper
- 1 Tablespoon Parmesan Cheese
- Fresh Parsley, for garnish
Instructions
- Clean cauliflower and cut the center bottom to remove the stem and leaf parts.
- Dice cauliflower into florets and put into a large pot. Fill pot with water to cover the cauliflower.
- Season with a pinch of salt and fresh cracked pepper.
- Boil cauliflower for about 25 minutes until fork tender.
- Drain cauliflower in a colander.
- Add half of the cauliflower to a food processor (or blender).
- Add butter, sour cream, garlic, salt and pepper to a food processor.
- Mix until all ingredients are combined and cauliflower is a creamy texture.
- Add the rest of the cauliflower to the food process and mix until cauliflower is a creamy, mashed potato consistency.
- Set aside.
- Preheat oven to 400 Degrees.
- Chop onion and celery into small pieces and set aside.
- Chop garlic and set aside.
- Chop mushrooms into small pieces and set aside.
- In a large skillet over medium high heat, add oil.
- Add ground turkey, season with salt and pepper and cook, breaking up until small pieces.
- Once meat is cooked, pour into a bowl and set aside.
- In the same skillet, add olive oil and heat on medium heat for 1 minute.
- Add onion and celery and sauté for 10 minutes.
- Add garlic and mushrooms and cook for 10 minutes, until mushrooms are cooked.
- Add flour, salt and pepper and mix well to coat the veggies.
- Add broth, frozen vegetables, Worcestershire sauce, tomato paste, mix well, and let cook 5 minutes.
- Add cooked ground turkey, mix well, and cook another 10 minutes.
- Spray casserole dish with non-fat cooking spray.
- Pour turkey and veggie mixture to dish. Spread to make even.
- Pour mashed cauliflower over turkey mixture and spread to make even.
- Sprinkle top with paprika.
- Bake for 20 minutes.
- Remove from oven, top with Parmesan cheese and garnish with parsley.
Notes
To speed up the process, make the Garlic Mashed Cauliflower ahead of time, or while the turkey & veggie mixture is simmering.
Nutrition is based on the NEW Weight Watchers Freestyle Program guidelines. Nutrition calculated using Weight Watchers calculator.
NUTRITION: Serves 6,- (2 SmartPoints Per Serving) CALORIES: 54 FAT:4.6 SATURATED FAT: 1.4 CARBS: 2.1 FIBER: 0.3 SUGARS: 0 PROTEIN: 0.8
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21 Comments
Ashley Brannan
August 23, 2016 at 10:59 am Can't wait to try your latest recipe! ?Andrea@WellnessNotes
August 24, 2016 at 4:33 pm Not having a kitchen for four weeks is tough! I love mashed cauliflower, and using them in a pie with a veggie turkey filling is a great idea! Andrea@WellnessNotes recently posted...Tommy Bahama Maxi DressKristine
August 25, 2016 at 3:30 pm Haha yes Andrea! It was difficult and I grew tired of eating sandwhiches :)!!Amber
October 24, 2016 at 10:45 am I make cottage pie with ground Turkey on occasion and it turns out fantastic. Love the idea of a mashed cauliflower! A comfort food turned healthy! Yum.Kristine
October 24, 2016 at 12:09 pm I love easy, healthy swaps to comfort food too Amber! Thank you so much for commenting!!celeste
October 24, 2016 at 11:23 am This looks like a great recipe!Kristine
October 24, 2016 at 12:10 pm I'm glad you like it! Thank you so much for commenting Celeste!!Kim Smith
October 24, 2016 at 3:08 pm This looks pretty good. I recently heard about the cauliflower substitution for mashed potatoes and this will give me a good recipe to try it out. Kim Smith recently posted...Easy Oven Baked Glazed CarrotsKristine
October 24, 2016 at 3:26 pm Thanks Kim! Swapping the cauliflower for mashed potatoes makes it super healthy but still just as good... even better actually! I hope you try it out! Thank you for commenting! Kristine recently posted...Spicy Pumpkin SoupJeeYoung W
October 24, 2016 at 3:51 pm I am drooling. This looks so filling and delicious! :)Kristine
October 24, 2016 at 3:53 pm Yes, very filling and delicious! Thank you so much for commenting JeeYoung!Aish Padihari
October 24, 2016 at 5:42 pm I love cauliflower and this is a great alternative to potatoes.Kristine
October 25, 2016 at 11:21 am Yes, cauliflower is such a great alternative to potatoes! I only wish I would have discovered this swap a long time ago. Thank you for commenting Aish!Heather @Boston Girl Bakes
October 24, 2016 at 7:34 pm I love shepherd's pie! But always feel so guilty making up a batch of it...can't wait to try this version :)Kristine
October 25, 2016 at 11:21 am Me too Heather!!! This version is guilt free so that you can eat TWO servings :)!! Thank you so much for commenting Heather!Jazz
October 25, 2016 at 4:23 pm This dish looks so cozy and I wouldn't have thought about replacing with cauliflower. Thank you so much for sharing!Kristine
October 25, 2016 at 4:43 pm It's sooo cozy and comforting! Thank you so much for commenting Jazz!Becca Scott
August 13, 2017 at 1:10 am Wow this was so amazing! Just made it, absolutely wonderful! Thanks so much for sharing this recipe. I already look forward to leftovers tomorrow!Kristine
August 14, 2017 at 9:09 am Oh I'm so glad to hear! I think the left overs are even better :)Katelyn Fitzpatrick
July 25, 2018 at 4:22 pm Pheww 1 tablespoon of pepper was overwhelmingly too much! I questioned it but listened and I could barely eat the cauli rice. Was that a mistake, or am I missing something? I am a pepper girl all the way too!Kristine
August 6, 2018 at 10:15 am Yes, it should only be 1 teaspoon! I've updated the recipe... thank you for catching that!