In agreeing with dr. David Servan-Schreiber, animals products should be 'occasional foods' not the main thing of our diet. Have a plate full of vegetables and a side of meat or fish (rather than the other way around). Keep your weekly intake of farmed animal products to say approximately 200 grams; if possible stick to either organic grass fed or better still, 'wild', non-processed meat products.
Scientific publications show that chemical contaminants of farmed animals accumulate in their fat and are largely to blame for the inflammation that fosters the development of cancer (Servan-Schreiber 2011:125).
A few months ago I discovered a butcher in the Netherlands that distributes outdoor reared beef of Highland Cow, a type of animal that grows up in 'the wild', grazing in Dutch natural parks. After 16 years of having no kind of meat what so ever, I decided to dust off my Shepperd's Pie recipe.
You need
•oven proof (Pyrex) pan 20 x 30 x 6 cm (7,5 x 11,5 x 2,5 inch)
Ingredients (for 4 persons)
•500 g (1.1 pounds) of minced beef
•1 small onion, chopped
•1/2 red bell pepper, chopped
•1/2 green bell pepper, chopped
•1 garlic clove, pressed
•60 g (2.1 oz) of mixed nuts (1), chopped
•50 g (1.1 oz) of raisins
•12 green olives, sliced
•1 hard boiled egg, chopped
•1 celery root, peeled and chopped (2)
•120 ml (1/2 cup) of unsweetened almond milk (3)
•2 tbs + 1 tbs of good quality virgin (coconut)/olive oil
•(Himalayan) salt and (freshly grinded) peper to taste
•1/2 tbs Herbes de Provence
Preparation
•Warm up the oven to 250°C (480 °F)
•Bring your pan to medium heat and stir fry the minced beef with a bit of salt, allowing it to release all fat
•Remove and drain the minced beef
•Warm up the 2 tbs of oil in a clean pan and fry the onion and garlic for a few minutes (3 to 4)
•Add the peppers and stir
•A few minutes later (5) add the minced beef, nuts, olives, raisins and Herbes de Provence
•Blend all ingredients and stir for an additional 5 minutes
•Taste the mixture and if necessary, add a bit of salt
•Turn the fire off and add the hard boiled egg. Mix gently
•Pour into the oven dish and disperse evenly
•Steam the celery root and mash. Add the almond milk, some salt, pepper and 1 tbs of good quality virgin oil
•Top the meat mixture with the celery root mash.
•Put in the oven for approximately 15-20 minutes.
Remarks
(1) My idea of 'mixed nuts' is: walnuts, macademia, cashew and pecan. Peanuts are not 'nuts' and in my book, should be avoided. Peanuts do not grow on trees (but under the ground) and are known to have a high dose of aflatoxin, a cancerous substance.
(2) For other 'mash' options look at Patato Blues in this blog
(3) Depending of how much the celery root preserved its moisture during steaming, you might need a little more or less. I would say, add the almond milk little by little
