I love cooking and trying new recipes, so I decided that I'd dedicate every Monday to my adventures in cooking. I'll post a recipe that I've tried recently and I'll let you know how it went and what I thought of it. Then my hope is you'll let me know how it turned out for you and how we can improve, change or jazz up the recipe. I always love adding a thing or two to recipes, that's what makes cooking fun!
For our first recipe, I'm going with a classic comfort food, Shepherd's Pie. I saw this recipe in Southern Living about a year ago and I've made it many times since and it always gets rave reviews from the hubby. What I really love about this recipe is all the extra veggies in it! When I was growing up we called Shepherd's Pie, Mashed Potato pie. :) My mom had a very simple recipe of ground hamburger, corn and pile a potatoes topped with cheese, though tasty, I'm not sure how good it is for you. So, here is an updated version for you...
- 1 1/2 pounds ground round
- 1 cup chopped onion
- 1/2 (8-oz.) package fresh mushrooms, sliced
- 1 garlic clove, minced
- 1 cup frozen peas, thawed
- 4 teaspoons beef bouillon granules
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
- 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
- 1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
- 1 (14 1/2-oz.) can stewed tomatoes
- 1 bay leaf
- 2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
Preparation
1. Brown beef in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat, stirring often, 10 minutes or until meat crumbles and is no longer pink. Remove ground beef from skillet using a slotted spoon; reserve 2 Tbsp. drippings in skillet. Reduce heat to medium.
2. Sauté onion, mushrooms, and garlic in hot drippings over medium heat 10 to 11 minutes or until tender. Stir in ground beef, peas, and next 4 ingredients. Sprinkle flour over meat mixture. Increase heat to medium-high, and cook, stirring constantly, 1 minute. Stir in tomatoes, bay leaf, and vinegar, breaking up large tomato pieces with a spoon. Reduce heat to medium, and cook, stirring often, 3 minutes or until slightly thickened. Remove bay leaf. Transfer mixture to a lightly greased 3-qt. baking dish or pan. Spoon Cheese-and-Carrot Mashed Potatoes evenly over meat mixture, smoothing with back of spoon.
3. Bake at 400° for 15 minutes or until thoroughly heated. Let stand 5 minutes before serving.
Ingredients
- 1 (1-lb.) package baby carrots
- 1 tablespoon butter
- 1 (22-oz.) package frozen mashed potatoes - don't use refrigerated!
- 2 1/2 cups milk
- 1 cup (4 oz.) shredded Cheddar cheese
- 1 tablespoon fresh thyme leaves
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 teaspoon ground pepper
Preparation
1. Place carrots and 1/4 cup water in a large microwave-safe bowl. Cover tightly with plastic wrap; fold back a small edge to allow steam to escape. Microwave at HIGH 8 to 10 minutes or until carrots are tender. Drain.
2. Stir in butter. Coarsely mash carrots with a potato masher.
3. Prepare potatoes according to package directions, using 2 1/2 cups milk. Stir in cheese, next 3 ingredients, and carrot mixture until well blended.
So, here are my touches on the recipe....
I cook the meat mixture in an oven proof skillet that will hold everything, including the mashed potatoes, this makes clean up a little easier. I add some bell pepper when cooking the onion and I always think adding a little corn would be nice for old times sake, but I haven't done that yet, but feel free to try that. :) I also add about half a box of frozen chopped spinach (defrosted and well drained) to the meat mixture, during step 2. As well as use whole wheat flour during the gravy making step and you can't tell at all! Plus, I add a dash of worcestershire sauce and tomato paste during cooking. For the potato recipe, I actually make homemade mashed potatoes like I normally would with milk(not 2 1/2 cups though) and butter and just add the mashed carrots, cheese and seasoning to that and it turns out perfectly. If you use the frozen, let me know how you like them!
So, I hope you like this first selection and happy cooking!!
3 comments:
looks good.. glad you are back
<3 to see you back in action - you are always a delight.
my issue with "the pie" has always been PEAS. you know, I can do without meat and try to (though the "badies" fried chicken, hamburgers, bacon ... are yummy) and luckily I pretty much like all legumes (lentils, edamame, black beans, pinto beans, etc.), BUT not the good old green bean, green pea or lima been - does that make me unAmerican? :( LOVE that you added spinach. Marky Marc is doing that now - he is always experimenting with adding extra veggies!
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