by Americanized, I mean that authentic Sheppard's Pie calls for sausage or mutton or some such. hell, I don't know. I'm not from England. 
I know this looks like a mish mash of ingrediants...because it is. I was a tad leary myself trying it (I despise tomato soup) but I tried it anyway because it seemed like a good, hearty meal. and it was.
the only deviation I made to the recipe was using a tub of mashed potatoes instead of the "4 potatoes"....let's face it, I can be pretty damn lazy. who wants to peel, boil, and mash potatoes if they don't have to? but it worked, and it was good.
this is by far the best thing I have ever cooked, and I am quite proud of the results. not only did it taste like the real thing, but it was super easy. when I first mixed the liquids and tasted them, I wasn't sure I was going to like the outcome. but once I added them to the beef and broccoli, the liquids picked up their flavor and tasted fabulous!
my only complaint was that it coulda used more broccoli. and next time I will try adding carrots and onions as well.