Shepherd’s Pie Deep Dish Pizza
Personally I believe that deep dish is more of a pie than a pizza, so naturally filling it with a shepherd’s pie makes a lot of sense to me! Honestly though, is shepherd’s pie even really pie? Hmm. Setting aside these existential questions, let’s get into the deliciousness in front of us. A meaty layer of lamb and veggies with a thick sauce, topped with a buttery layer of mashed potatoes! Lot’s of cheddar cheese in between each layer, and all tucked inside a buttery flakey Chicago style deep dish crust!
The inspiration for this recipe
I have been going through a lot of my website archives lately and fixing up my favorite older recipes. This process has been super inspiring for me! One of my most popular recipes is this Italian sub deep dish, so I was brainstorming some other things I could put into a deep dish pizza. One of my favorite things I used to order at Uno’s was the pizza skins. It is basically a mashed potato deep dish pizza. I was thinking of other ways I could put mashed potatoes on a pizza and finally came to the shepherd’s pie deep dish idea!
Prepping the dough
The reason deep dish pizza dough is so flaky and buttery is because – you guessed it – there is a ton of butter in it! To achieve the flakey magic, you make the dough, then roll it out and spread some butter all over it. Then roll it up into a log and then a spiral to make sure there is lots of butter throughout the dough. For more on the dough making, I have been using this post as a guide and adapted the recipe from there.
There is also a bit of cornmeal mixed in which I would never put in regular pizza dough. It adds a nice texture to the deep dish dough!
Make the lamb stew mixture
I have had a lot of different types of shepherd’s pie over the years. My favorite is the British version that has a thick gravy at the bottom with the meat and veggies. I wanted it to be like that, but of course it had to be really thick to be inside a pizza.
Cook the lamb and veggies first, then add butter, garlic, and flour. The stock goes in next, then some thyme and rosemary. Cook until it is nice and thick! Add the corn at the very end.
Building the shepherd’s pie deep dish pizza
Spread the dough out in a greased springform pan and preheat the oven to 400. Then get the layers going! Cheese first.
After the first cheese layer, add the meaty goodness.
Top with more cheese, then the potatoes, and then a final layer of cheese.
Bake the shepherd’s pie deep dish pizza
Bake the pizza for about 35 minutes at 400 until browned all around.
Serve the shepherd’s pie deep dish pizza
Allow the pizza to cool for about 10 minutes before slicing it up. It’s a little messy but so worth it!
Look how creamy, juicy, and amazing this looks! Such an epic meal for a cold winter night- pure comfort food!
I was able to eat this shepherd’s pie deep dish pizza with my hands like any good pizza! Still, make sure to have a fork around for the last bits that fall on to the plate.
I loved the cheese in this because cheese is not typically in shepherds pie, so it added so much new flavor! It also sort of melted into the stew and helped everything stay in place.
Twists on this dish
You could use a store bought crust for this if you want. Deep dish pizza crust is definitely a bit different than regular pizza crust, but it would still work! You could also use beef instead of lamb. I sometimes use beef in my shepherds pie, but don’t tell because the shepherd’s pie police is a very real thing, and they will be quick to tell you – it’s not shepherds pie if you use beef! Personally, I couldn’t care less.
If you are looking for more fun twists on deep dish pizza, check out my Italian sub deep dish, or this lasagna deep dish!
If you are looking for more fun twists on shepherd’s pie, check out my breakfast shepherd’s pie, or this shepherds pie nachos.
Shepherds Pie Deep Dish Pizza
Equipment
Ingredients
Pizza Dough
- 2 cups all purpose flour
- 1/2 cup fine yellow cornmeal
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 tablespoon sugar
- 1 packet instant yeast 2 1/4 teaspoons
- 1 cup water
- 1/4 cup melted butter
- 1/4 cup softened butter
mashed potatoes
- 3 russet potatoes
- 1/2 cup softened butter
- 1/4 cup milk
- salt and pepper
Lamb mixture
- 1 tablespon oil
- 3/4 pounds ground lamb
- 1/2 onion diced
- 1 carrot diced
- 2 ribs celery diced
- 2 cloves garlic minced
- 1 tablespoon butter
- 2 tablespoons all purpose flour
- 1 1/2 cups beef stock
- 1 teaspoon dried thyme
- 1/2 teaspoon dried rosemary
- 1/2 cup corn
Pizza
- oil for the pan
- 6 oz shredded cheddar cheese
Instructions
Prep the pizza dough
- Stir together all the pizza dough ingredients except for the softened butter. You can do this in a stand mixer, or in a bowl with a spoon. If in a mixer, knead for about 8 minutes. If by hand, pour it out on the counter and knead for about 12 minutes.
- Add to a greased bowl and cover. Allow to rest for about an hour on the counter, or in the fridge overnight.
- Roll out the dough very thin and spread the softened butter over the dough. Roll the dough up tightly into a log, then roll the log up. See photos above if needed. Place the dough into a greased bowl and allow to rest another hour.
Make the potatoes
- Lightly grease the potatoes and roast them in the oven at 350 for about an hour and a half until tender.
- Scoop out the potatoes from the skin and use a potato ricer or mill to break them up.
- Stir in the butter and milk and set aside until ready to use.
Make the lamb
- Preheat a pan with your prefered cooking oil. Add the lamb and cook to brown while breaking it up. After it's mostly cooked, about 5 minutes, add in the onion, carrot, and celery. Continue to cook for about 8 minutes until the veggies are softened.
- Add in the butter and garlic and cook 2 minutes. Add in the flour and cook 2 minutes, stirring often.
- Stir in the stock, stirring fast to avoid any lumps. Continue to stir as you bring to a simmer. Stir in the rosemary and thyme.
- Cook about 10 minutes until he sauce has thickened nicely and coats the meat well. Stir in the corn and remove from heat.
Make the pizza
- Preheat oven to 400
- Grease a springform pan. Roll out the dough to a thick round a bit larger than the pan. Spread it over the springform pan. Press it into the pan creating the crust, with the crust reaching up at least 3/4 of the way up the sides.
- Start with a layer of cheese, then add in the lamb mixture. Most of the mixture should fit but make sure not to overdo it. Leave room for the potatoes.
- Add more cheese, then the potatoes, filling it right up to the top of the dough. Top with the remaining cheese.
- Put he springform pan onto a baking sheet to prevent any leaking oil from dripping into the oven and burning. Bake the pizza at 400 for 35 minutes until the cheese is browned around the edges and the dough is fully cooked.
- Allow to rest for 10 minutes, then remove form the pan, slice, and serve.
This is an excellent idea.