Shepherd's Pie for the freezer (or not)

I made this in an attempt to find a recipe that I could make & freeze ahead of time to leave at the neighbor's house while they were out of town. I haven't tried it yet after freezing, but the first batch turned out nicely. And it was my first time cooking with allspice.

Original recipe here.

Shepherd’s Pie

Ingredients

For top:
3 lbs potatoes (I prefer Russets or Yukon gold)
½ cup milk
2 tbsp butter
½ tsp salt
cheddar (if making it "extra fancy")
For filling:
1 tbsp olive oil
½ medium onion, finely chopped
2 carrots, finely diced
1 lb lean ground beef
1 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
2 tsp allspice seasoning
1 tsp salt
¾ cup beef stock
1 tbsp flour
½ cup frozen peas
½ cup frozen corn


Instructions

Place 3 lbs of peeled and chopped potatoes in a large pot with cold water and bring to a boil. Cook until potatoes are fork tender.

Meanwhile, heat a large frying pan over medium heat. When heated, add the olive oil and onions. Cook for 2-3 minutes until onions start to become translucent.

Add the carrots, cooking for an additional 5 minutes. Add the ground beef and cook until no longer pink.

Add the worchestershire sauce, salt and allspice seasoning into the cooked meat mixture and stir until well combined.

Sprinkle the flour over the mixture and pour in the beef stock. Stir together and allow sauce to bubble. This will help thicken the sauce. Once the sauce has thicken add the frozen vegetables. Give it a quick stir to combine and set aside off the heat.

By this time your potatoes should be cooked. Strain the potatoes and place them back in the hot pot. Add the milk, butter and salt. Mash the potatoes with your preferred technique.

Spread the meat mixture out evenly along the bottom of an ovenproof casserole dish. Spoon the mashed potatoes over top of the meat. Top with a cup of shredded cheese if you wish to make it extra fancy.

At this point you can place the shepherd’s pie in the oven to eat or in the freezer to save for another day. Cook in the oven at 350 F until heated through and the potatoes are golden brown on top.

If you are freezing, take it out the night before and defrost overnight in the fridge. Cook in the oven at 350 F until heated through.