Shepards Pie

So lets be honest, Shepards Pie really isn't the most photogenic food, but it sure does taste good!  To me it is a total comfort food and it's a cinch to put together.  A prefect meal for those nights that you don't have much time to spend in the kitchen, yet you want something tasty and comforting.  

I decided to give this recipe a little "Kick" with spicing things up a bit.  Instead of only using Tomato Soup for the sauce, I added some ketchup and BBQ sauce and switched up the usual green beans and corn with a bell pepper and onion.  The Hubs and the L.O. loved it so I know its a keeper.  Give it a try and let me know what you think! 

Recipe:

1 pound lean ground beef (or ground turkey)

1 bell pepper (diced)

1/2 onion (diced fine)

3 large potatoes (peeled and mashed)

1/4 cup sour cream

4 Tbsp. Butter

2-3 Tbsp. Milk

1 (10 oz) can tomato soup

4 Tbsp. ketchup

3 Tbsp. BBQ sauce (I used sweet baby rays)

1 cup Cheddar Cheese (shredded)

Salt & Pepper 

Preheat the oven to *350.  

In a large saute pan, season the meat with salt and pepper then brown the meat till no longer pink.  When done cooking, drain any excess fat and set aside.

While the meat is cooking, peel and cube the potatoes and place into a large pot of boiling water.  Boil till potatoes are tender and ready to be mashed (about 12-15 minutes).  Drain the potatoes then add in the butter and mash till lumps are gone.  Add in the sour cream, milk, and a dash of salt & pepper and mix till smooth.

Next, dice up the pepper and onion and place into the saucepan with the meat.  Add in the soup, ketchup, and BBQ sauce and stir till well combined.  Place the meat mixture into a lightly greased 9x13 baking dish then spread the mashed potatoes on top of the meat.  Finish by sprinkling the cheddar cheese over the top of the potatoes.  

Place in the oven and bake for 25-30 minutes.  Enjoy!!!

Oven Baked Stew

I had been wanting to make beef stew for awhile now! I know, it's like practically summer where I am right now, but I have just been craving some major comfort food lately, and well, Beef Stew fell right into that category for me.  You'll come to realize with me that when it comes to food, Well, there really are no rules.

Like for example, I could eat pumpkin crumble any time of the year! It doesn't have to be Fall time for me to break out pumpkin desserts.  And as far as soup goes, well, I like a good soup now and again even if it is in the middle of the summer.

So when I came across this recipe over @ The Girl Who Ate Everything I knew at once that my craving was going to be fulfilled. And fulfilled fast too, cause boy, was this recipe a cinch to throw together!

GIFT CARD WINNER ANNOUNCED HERE!

Recipe:

1 (1oz) pkg of Dry Onion Soup Mix (I use the Lipton brand)

1/2 tsp. Salt

1/2 tsp. Paprika

1 pound of lean Beef Stew Meat (cut into bite sized pieces)

1 can Cream of Celery Soup

1/2 cup Ketchup

2 medium sized potatoes (peeled and diced into bite sized pieces)

3 large carrots (peeled and diced)

1/2 of an onion (diced)

In a large bag, combine the seasonings and stew meat and shake until all the meat is well seasoned.  Place into a lighlty greased casserole dish and top with the sliced potato, carrots, and onion. Next mix together the ketchup and soup and pour over the top of the stew.  

Cover the casserole dish with a lid if it comes with one (if not, then just cover with foil) and bake @ *325 for 2 hours.  Serve with warm bread or a roll for dipping! 

(recipe source: The Girl Who Ate Everything)

Tin Foil Dinners

Oh me oh my were these good or what! I seriously felt like I was sitting around the campfire enjoying the most amazing dinner!  Seriously, who would have thought that a tin foil dinner would have tasted so good, but I'm not kidding with ya, it was GOOD! The meat was super tender, the vegetables were perfectly cooked, and the dish was sooooo full of flavor! Maybe I was just really hungry but The Hubs was oohing and aaahing too, so I'm assuming I'm not the only one that felt that way. I highly suggest you whip some of these up for your family. They will not be disappointed!

Recipe:

1 pound of Lean Ground Beef

2 large Potatoes (peeled and sliced thin)

1 onion (sliced)

1 large Zucchinni

McCormick Steak Seasoning

Garlic Salt

Salt and Pepper

Season the meat well with all of the seasonings.  Separate the meat into 4th's. (so about a 1/4 pound of meat will go into each foil) Next, peel and slice the potato into thin slices.  Slice the onion into thin strips too. Wash the zucchini and slice into 1/4" thick pieces. 

Take 2 pieces of foil for each dinner and lay one on top of the other creating a + symbol.  Place a 1/4 lb. of meat onto all 4 foils.  Measure out the vegetables so each dinner gets equal amounts.  Now just layer the vegetables on top of the meat then season the veggies well with salt, pepper, garlic salt, and steak seasoning.  Wrap the foil up tight and place them onto a baking sheet.

Bake @*350 for 1 hour to an hour and 15 minutes.

*NOTE: One way to add flavor to the dish is to take the veggies, lightly drizzle them with oil, and place them in a bag, along with a packet of the dry Hidden Valley Ranch seasoning and give it a good shake. 

Sweet Potato Fries

My husband and I are not huge fans of sweet potatoes, however my little girl loves them and she loves french fries so I decided to give them a try and can I just say that even I was pleasantly surprised! They were sweet, but with the right amount of saltyness, and well they were pretty darn good. And with summer really not to far away, these are the perfect side to all those BBQ's to be had.

Recipe:
1-2 large sweet potatoes
2 Tbsp. Olive Oil
1 tsp. salt
1 tsp. ground black pepper
1-2 Tbsp. brown sugar (I prefer 2 Tbsp but if you dont want them as sweet just use 1)
Pinch of season salt

Preheat oven to *425. Peel sweet potatoes and then slice into thin strips. Place them into a bowl and drizzle them with the olive oil.  Next, in a small bowl combine all the seasonings then sprinkle them over the potatoes. Give them a good stir till all the potatoes are well coated with the seasonings. Place on to a lighlty greased, foil lined baking sheet. Bake for 25-30 minutes turning over half way through.