You're not going to like me for this, but the inspiration for this week’s

recipe came all of a sudden as I was driving home across the tops the other day, and happened upon a field of sheep, all of them with delightfully cute tiny lambs in tow.

At this time of year, the fields around us are filled with leapy little lambs, whizzing around in their little gangs, jumping off rocks and hillocks, and aggressively nuzzling their mothers for milk.

They’re adorable, especially our near-neighbour’s Zwartbles sheep, a breed you’ll just have to Google to appreciate how gorgeous they are; a handsome black and white beast with thick, chocolate-brown wool. And the lambs are heartbreakingly sweet, like little humbugs.

I know I’ll get it in the neck for this, but even when looking at a field of spring lambs, I can’t help but start assessing them for edibility. It is what they’re there for, after all.

A nice broad back suggests fine, fat chops somewhere down the line, and stout legs mean the beast will eventually yield some good roasts.

Anyway, as I was sizing up the lambs, my mind turned to all things lamb-y, and how I’d not cooked with the meat for a while. Lamb’s lovely stuff, and is especially good in the warmer months.

In a few weeks, we’ll see the early Spring Lamb, tender as anything, but at most times of the year we can still get good, tasty meat, especially up here in the sheep-dotted Pennine region where you’re never far from a woolly fieldful. In summer, steaks and chops are brilliant on the barbecue, as are tender brochettes, layered up with peppers and onions and strewn with dried or fresh Provencal-type herbs. Carved off the sticks onto rice or salads, it’s the perfect quick summery meal.

But right now, while it may be warm when the sun’s out, the evenings can still be a little chilly, and so we sometimes require something a little more substantial for our evening meal. And that’s where my mind went as I considered my mental archive of lamb dishes.

I love a classic shepherd’s pie, that gorgeous combination of rich, tasty lamb and vegetables baked beneath a cloud of soft mashed potato, with a golden crunchy crust.

Suddenly, I knew what I was going to make. A few weeks ago, a friend had posted the menu from a new Manchester restaurant online, and I was struck by how appealing it all looked. One of the side dishes – not even a main course, folks, an accompaniment – was this mouth wateringly-appealing concoction. Shepherd’s Pie Potato Skins.

There was no doubt this was the recipe I had to cook. You know me by now; I’m very much a bee-in-bonnet kinda guy. I was at the farm shop within a few hours, and soon at home, setting forth on recreating my own version of this heavenly-sounding plateful.

Filled potato skins are always a good idea – one of my ‘can’t think of what to cook for supper’ dishes is a tray of skins refilled with the mashed potato, bound with crème fraîche, sizzled pancetta and spring onions, and strewn with tasty cheese, but this takes filled skins to another level. It’s a nice, simple dish to prepare, and you can easily make most of it up in advance.

You could also substitute beef mince to make cottage pie skins, if you’re not a fan of lamb. And on the minced meat theme, I reckon it would also work really well with a chile con carne filling, or even a nice spicy keema curry. As ever, here’s the basic recipe. It’s up to you to run with it in any direction you fancy.

FOR THE SHEPHERD’S PIE FILLING:

500g minced lamb

1 carrot, very finely diced

1 onion, very finely diced

2 sticks celery, very finely diced

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 tablespoon tomato purée

150ml red wine

150ml Madeira

300ml strong lamb or chicken stock

A sprig of fresh thyme, leaves removed and chopped finely

A sprig of fresh rosemary, needles removed and chopped finely

A handful of fresh parsley, finely chopped

Maldon salt & freshly-ground black pepper

Extra-virgin olive oil

FOR THE POTATOES:

1kg large round baking potatoes (Desirée are ideal)

Extra-virgin olive oil

Maldon salt

A little butter

Splash milk

EXTRAS:

Mouli

Piping bag (optional)

METHOD:

Gently heat a good splash of olive oil in a deep pan. Gently sweat the onion, carrot and celery until soft and translucent, usually about 40 minutes. Add the garlic and cook for a few minutes, before adding the tomato purée, the wine, Madeira and stock.

Bring to the boil, then reduce the heat until the pan is barely bubbling. In a frying pan, sear the mince all over in small batches, getting good colour on the meat and separating the pieces. Add to the vegetables and stock and simmer for about an hour, or until the mixture is thick and tasty. Add the chopped herbs, season the filling and set aside. As the meat simmers, heat the oven to 220ºC / Gas 7.

Prick the potatoes all over with a sharp knifepoint and rub them with a little olive oil and salt. This helps raise the surface temperature and wick out the moisture, giving you a crunchier spud.

Bake the potatoes until crunchy and tender within, between 45 minutes and 1 hour. Remove from the oven and tap them gently on a hard surface. The steam will help ‘shatter’ the flesh and fluff it up.

Then, cut each potato in half, and carefully scoop out the flesh, passing through a mouli into a bowl. Set the skins out in a wide baking tray.

Add a good knob of butter and a splash of warm milk to the potatoes, but not as much as for regular mash – you need it to hold its shape. When you have the right texture, season with a little salt and load into a piping bag, if using. Otherwise a spoon is fine.

Fill the skins with the meat mixture, level them off and pipe the potato over the top. You can chill the skins overnight at this point, if you wish. Bake until golden and crunchy, and serve with a few greens or a nice crisp salad.