This easy-to-make dish is delicious whether you're diabetic or not, and you can make it ahead, refrigerate it, and finish it in about half an hour in your air fryer. You'll need to brown the ground beef and onion on the stove top, which doesn't take long. You mix in some spinach, cheeses, and a few other ingredients. The ground beef mixture forms the base of your pie. Rather than the usual white/Idaho mashed potato, the beef mixture gets a topping of cooked sweet potato, which keeps the vitamin and fiber content of the dish high. The sweet potato also tastes great with the beef mixture! The shepherd's pie comes out of the air fryer hot, creamy, cheesy, and so delicious that it's hard to believe the pie is as nutritious as it is! You won't need to serve much with the pie. A salad and/or fresh fruit would be plenty. Enjoy!
Air Fryer Beef, Spinach, and Sweet Potato Shepherd's Pie (Diabetic Friendly) -- Serves 4
Base
8 ounces of lean ground beef (93 percent)
1/4 cup of chopped onion
1/4 teaspoon of salt
1/4 teaspoon of pepper
1 teaspoon of minced dried parsley flakes
3 - 4 large handfuls of fresh spinach, chopped
1 cup of light sour cream (or use yogurt, if you prefer)
1 - 2 tablespoons of grated Parmesan cheese
1 cup of low-fat cottage cheese
1/4 - 1/3 cup of shredded cheddar cheese
Heat a large, non-stick skillet over medium heat, and, when it's hot, add the ground beef and onion. Sprinkle on the salt and pepper. Saute the beef mixture for about 10 minutes or until the beef is cooked through and the onion has softened. Stir in the dried parsley, then add the chopped spinach, stirring until the spinach has wilted into the beef mixture. Turn off the heat and stir in the light sour cream, Parmesan cheese, cottage cheese, and shredded cheddar cheese. Spritz well with non-stick cooking spray a quart-sized (or larger) dish that will fit in your air fryer basket. Pour the beef mixture into the bottom of your dish and smooth out the beef mixture. Top the beef mixture with the mashed sweet potato mixture (see below) and spread the sweet potato mixture out evenly to cover the beef mixture. You can cover and refrigerate the shepherd's pie to cook later or air fry it immediately at 320 degrees for about 25 minutes or until it is hot, bubbly, and spotty brown on top. If you refrigerate the shepherd's pie, add on about five minutes of cooking time.
Sweet Potato Topping
1 medium, cooked sweet potato (1 1/2 - 2 cups)
1 tablespoon of grated Parmesan cheese
1 tablespoon of chopped chives or chopped green onion
Salt and pepper to taste
1/4 - 1/2 cup of milk
In a medium bowl or measure mash the cooked potato with the Parmesan cheese, chives/onion, and a little salt and pepper. Add enough milk to give the potato a slightly creamy consistency (or however you like your mashed potatoes). Use the mixture to top the beef base for the shepherd's pie.
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