2015 Grenache Thanksgiving Turkey Shepherd’s Pie

by | Sep 8, 2018 | Blog, Pairing

2015 Grenach Shepards with glass

2015 Grenache Thanksgiving Turkey Shepherd’s Pie From Dr. Faith Frankel

 

Summer is quickly flying by and fall is fast approaching. It’s around this time of the year that I start thinking about my Thanksgiving menu. I know it’s early, but I like to keep my dinner guests on their toes by slightly changing my traditional dishes. Sculpterra Grenache is a perfect pairing with this Thanksgiving recipe mash-up. The wine is light enough to go with turkey yet bright and slightly bold enough to cut through the sweet and warming spices of fall. I like pairing this with the red Grenache because the dish is complex with it’s umami flavors, such as ingredients like the mushrooms, worcestershire sauce, and dijon mustard, so it needs to be paired with a red wine, but a wine that is delicate enough for a turkey dinner.

 

Thanksgiving Shepherd’s Pie

Ingredients

  • 1 pound ground Turkey (85%/15% lean)
  • 1 medium onion, chopped (about 1/2 cup)
  • 2 cloves of garlic, chopped
  • 1/3 cup of Sculpterra Grenache wine
  • 1 can Campbell’s Condensed Cream of Mushroom Soup
  • 2 tablespoon tomato paste
  • 2 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
  • 1 teaspoon of ground sage
  • 1 teaspoon of dried herb de Provence
  • 1/2 teaspoon of salt
  • 1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
  • 1 1/2 cup frozen peas, carrots, corn, and green beans, thawed
  • 1 (20 oz) container of Hormel mashed sweet potatoes with brown sugar, cinnamon, and nutmeg or make your own, recipe suggestion below
  • 1/2 cup french fried onions
  • 2 tablespoons of chopped parsley
  • 2 tablespoons of dried cranberries (optional)
  • 1 (14 oz) can of whole berry cranberry sauce
  • 1/4 cup of dijon mustard

 

Directions

Heat the oven to 400°F.  grenach3-shepards

Cook the beef, onion, garlic, salt, and pepper in a 10-inch ovenproof skillet or cast iron skillet over medium-high heat until the turkey is well browned, stirring often to separate meat. Pour in the wine and let it reduce by half. Stir the soup, tomato paste, Worcestershire sauce, sage, herb de Provence, and vegetables in the skillet and cook for 5-7 minutes. Meanwhile heat mashed sweet potatoes according to package directions.  Spoon the potatoes over the turkey mixture. Top pie with french fried onions and bake for 15 minutes or until the potatoes are lightly browned. Mix cranberry sauce and mustard together and heat on the stovetop over low heat until heated through. Serve alongside shepherd’s pie.

Mashed sweet potatoes

Ingredients

  • 3 medium sweet potatoes, peeled and cut into 2-inch chunks
  • 1/2 cup half-and-half
  • 4 tablespoons butter
  • 2 tablespoons light brown sugar
  • 1/4 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice
  • Coarse salt and ground pepper

Directions

Place sweet potatoes in a stockpot; add water to cover. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat; cook, uncovered, 10-15 minutes or until tender, drain and return to saucepan. Meanwhile, in another small saucepan, bring half-and-half, butter, brown sugar, and pie spice to a simmer, stirring to combine; remove from heat. Add to drained sweet potatoes, and mash just until smooth; season with salt and pepper.