The New Shepherd's Pie

Our fav comfort meal ever! We were first introduced to a version of this hearty casserole the night we came home from the hospital with our newborn son. Elated and exhausted, we were delighted to receive and eat up this lovely gift from a church friend. Ever since then, this has been a regular winter meal in our house. The way I prepare it makes 2 dinners. More work up front gives you a night off later on! Here's the version we currently enjoy almost 18 years later.

INGREDIENTS:
2 # ground beef 85/15 or 1# 85/15 and 1#ground turkey, browned
2 pkg Lipton's Beef & Mushroom dry soup
1 Family size (26+oz) can of Campbell's Vegetable Soup
2 pkg (10+oz) frozen mixed vegetables (like Bird's Eye Steamfresh)
4 heaping TBSP Wondra
3 cups mashed red potatoes
2 eggs
1/3 cup heavy cream
1/4 cup fresh basil, chopped
1 TBSP paprika
2/3 cup shredded cheddar cheese
Big pinch of Kosher Salt

EASY STEPS:
1. Brown meat in large skillet, stir in Wondra and add soups. Spread meat mixture into two medium sized glass casserole dishes. Sprinkle generously with Kosher salt.
2. While browning: Halve enough large red potatoes to fill a 5 quart stock pot, top with water and bring to boil. Lower heat and cook on med high til you can poke the potos and they are soft. Drain. Keep in pot.
3. While potatoing: Zap frozen veggies to thaw - about 2 minutes. Sprinkle evenly over both pans.
4. Mash potatoes with hand masher, adding enough heavy cream to create a slightly wet mixture. Stir in chopped basil, add eggs then paprika. Be sure this mixture is smooth enough to spread on two casseroles. If too thick, add more cream. Finish with cheddar cheese. Spread this mixture over meat.
5. Bake one casserole at 350 until bubbly - about 35 minutes. Cool the other pan then freeze. Be sure and use within 2 months for freshest taste.

Yummy! And since there no onions are involved, Spot wasn't hiding under the bed. This recipe could be morphed many ways. The way I first made it was with instant potatoes, but since I've become more of a cook I like to use real fresh ingredients and add freshness like basil.

Hearty Chicken Pot Pie

A few months ago I was in need of comfort food and went in search of Chix Pot Pie recipes. This is the one I found and tweaked that will comfort any man or woman in your life. I made it so often I started tripling the ingredients (except the pie crust) and freezing. Then all we had to do was thaw and bake when craving comfort or all your veggies mixed in one bite. We serve this with rice.

INGREDIENTS:
1 pkg of 2 refrigerator pie crusts at room temp
2 large chicken breasts, cubed or one deli cooked chicken skin and bones removed, cubed
1 cup sliced or shredded fresh carrots
1 cup sliced celery
2 cups frozen peas
2 small sweet onions, diced
1/3 cup butter
2/3 cups flour
Big pinch Kosher salt
1/2 - 1 tsp ground pepper
1 tsp celery seed
3 cups low sodium chicken broth
1 1/4 cups heavy cream
4 sprigs fresh rosemary, pulled off stem
3 cloves garlic, minced
3/4 cup sliced mushrooms

Let's walk through the recipe:
1. In large skillet, sauté onions, garlic and mushrooms in butter
2. In large saucepan, place carrots, celery and peas if using a cooked deli chicken. If using uncooked breasts, add them too. Add enough water just to cover. Bring to boil and cook 13 minutes. Drain and set aside, adding chicken if you didn't yet.
3. When onions etc are soft, whisk in flour and seasonings. Slowly add broth and cream. Add rosemary. Bring to boil, then simmer til thickened. Stir frequently. Set aside.
4. Unfurl one pie crust and fit to bottom and sides of 9" pie plate. Use fork to poke some holes in bottom and sides.
5. Spoon the chicken-veg mixture into bottom of pie crust. Pour the onion-gravy mixture over all. Fit other pie crust to top of pie and seal edges. Pierce crust to let out steam.
6. Bake 350 for 45 minutes or til crust is golden brown. If you need to keep warm, turn off oven and tent pie with foil.

Spot gives 4 paws and sits in hope like a mime at our feet! This recipe makes a generous onion-gravy and if we have extra and I'm not making more than one pie, I freeze it for the next one.

Savory Meatloaf

Cool Fall temps are upon us and it's time to make some comfort food that won't make you break into a sweat when you cook it or eat it.  I am on a Basil kick, so there's a generous amount of that in the mix, plus hidden spinach - always good if you have kids who deny you the opportunity of seeing them eat veggies. The men in my life love this! Note, this can easily become two meals depending on the number at your table. Otherwise, this will truly feed a crowd.

MEATLOAF INGREDIENTS:
2 lbs 85% ground beef or turkey at room temp
2 medium Vadalia (sweet) onions, diced
2 eggs
2 cups Italian bread crumbs
1/2 cup water
1/4 cup ketchup
1 pkg frozen spinach, defrosted and squeezed dry
1/4 cup fresh basil, sliced
1/2 cup fresh Italian (flat) parsley, roughly chopped
Kosher salt to taste
Ground pepper to taste

PREP STEPS:
1. Mix all ingredients except the bread crumbs, when fully combined add the crumbs (use hands)
2. Form the mixture into a brick shape and set it inside a large baking dish 9 x 12 or larger (you will need at least an inch margin around the loaf)
3. Bake at 350 in preheated oven for 1 hour. Tent the dish if loaf top looks too brown. Bake another 30 minutes or til insides are cooked. (I sliced "the brick" in thirds to let the heat in and uncovered it  for this last part)

GRAVY?
While loaf is doing its thing, sauté 3/4 cups sliced mushrooms in extra virgin olive oil and drain. Leave on paper towel to add later. Get that oil off those shrooms!

1. In a large skillet, melt one stick of unsalted butter along with 3 cubes of beef bouillon (or similar product like "Better Than Bouillon"), whisk in 3+TBSP Wondra in order to make consistency of sand and briefly boil for a minute
2. Add 2 cans of Campbell's Beef Consume and, using a can to measure - add  another 1 1/4 cans of beef broth, add the mushrooms and sprinkle of kosher salt
3. Bring to boil, add 1/8 to 1/4 cup heavy cream and simmer for 20 minutes. Keep covered til ready to serve - stir frequently

We served this with mashed potos and it was a big hit! I love all the hidden healthy ingredients.
Spot? Sorry no paws. She mistakenly heard me chopping the onions and skee-daddled, silly hound!

Yummy Coffee Cake

Ah nostalgia! When our son informed me that he was craving something brown-sugary, I remembered a recipe for coffee cake that I had not made in his life time.  I wasn't even sure where to find it, but I did! Here it is. Both men in my life declare this delicious. I sure won't wait 17 years til next time.

INGREDIENTS
1/2 cup butter
1 cup sugar
2 beaten eggs
1 tsp baking powder
2 cups flour
1 cup sour cream
1 tsp vanilla
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp soda

HOW
Cream sugar and butter, add eggs, sour cream and vanilla. Then add all dry ingredients and blend well. Batter will be thick. Spoon half the batter into a well-buttered and floured bundt pan. Sprinkle half the topping (below) then the remaining batter and finish with remaining topping. Bake at 350 for 40-45 minutes.

TOPPING (mix well)
3 TBSP melted butter
2/3 cups brown sugar
1 1/2 TBSP cinnamon
1 cup chopped walnuts

Spot gives this 3 paws because we wouldn't let her lick the bowl or even have a taste. She knows it is really worth 4. But she still sits at our feet with high hopes.

Stuffed Garlic Bread

Saw a version of this reposted by someone on Face Book last week. Shared this recipe only to myself so I could try it without announcing my every thought on social media and thus caused five days of posts that no one else saw. :)

Turns out it was worth it. This bread is yum-licious! We served it tonight along with a new recipe for Hamburger Soup. I will do this again when it's colder and we make spaghetti or lasagna for sure...or more Hamburger Soup!

INGREDIENTS:
1 loaf of rosemary bread (from Target bakery) unsliced
1 stick unsalted butter, melted
5 TBSP minced onions (I used white and Videla - use less if you don't like the zippy taste)
8 tsp or more grated garlic cloves (we love garlic)
1 1/2 TBSP Dijon mustard
1/3 cup chopped fresh Italian parsley
12+ oz freshly shredded Parmesan and mixed Italian cheese

HOW TO:
1. Mix all the ingredients except the bread and cheeses in a small bowl to form a paste.
2. Cut the bread into cubes using "X" slices without cutting all the way through. I cut diagonal lines one way, then rotated the bread and cut more the other way.
3. Paste the buttery-garlic mixture into each slice and crevice, baste the top of the loaf.
4. Do the same with the cheeses (other cheeses will also work)
5. Wrap the loaf tightly in foil and bake for 20 minutes at 350. Unwrap and cook another 10 minutes or until cheese melts.

Don't you think the parsley and garlic make this healthy?!! Spot gives this 1 paw because I only dropped a few shreds of parmesan on the floor by accident. She didn't notice me mincing the onion.  Zippy!

Chicken Daniel (Divan)

Our son spent 10 weeks in Basic Training this summer and just about every letter we received listed the food he was missing (in addition to his family). The number one menu item he wanted to eat as soon as he got home was Chicken Daniel. A simple casserole I do with chicken or turkey leftovers... or when I don't want to spend a lot of time in the kitchen. Imagine, this is what he wanted FIRST after 10 weeks of tough training! Without further ado, here is my version...

INGREDIENTS:
- Enough turkey or chicken leftovers (already cooked) and cut into bite-sized pieces to layer in a 10x13 baking dish OR 1 grocery-store cooked chicken, meat pulled off the bone and skin removed OR 3 boneless chicken breasts, seasoned and baked and cut into pieces
- 1 pkg frozen broccoli, steamed in microwave for 5 minutes
- 1 jumbo can of Cream of Chicken Soup (or 1 1/2 small ones plus a small Cream of Celery)
- 2+ cups mayonaise
- the juice from 5 squeezed lemons
- 1 large onion, sauteed
- Kosher salt & ground pepper
- 1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
- Rice

STEPS:
1. Layer the steamed broccoli in the bottom of the large baking dish, followed by the chicken pieces. Be sure everything is covered.

2. In a medium bowl, mix the soup, mayonaise, sauteed onion, lemon juice with salt and pepper. Pour this over everything in the baking dish. Sprinkle with the cheese. Bake at 350 for 35-40 minutes, or til top is golden and cheese has melted.

3. While the casserole is baking, make the rice. We like to make our rice with two parts chicken broth to one part rice. Use a larger pot and cook on medium-low for 18 minutes (or so) with a wooden spoon propping up the lid. The rice is done when you see "pock marks" in the texture and the liquid has been absorbed.

Spot gives this 4 paws and for comfort food, so do we. I have even quinteppled this recipe and made it for a church youth gathering of 60. Yum city!

Skillet Pizza Part II

We couldn't decide what we wanted for dinner the other night so I looked through my own cooking blog and was reminded about a Cast Iron Skillet Pizza I made so often last year the skillet remained on the counter for months. So down I went to the utility room to find that seasoned ol' skillet. Here's my latest version.

INGREDIENTS:
1 3/4 packages of refridgerator thin pizza dough
1 - 24 oz. jar of Classico Four Cheese pasta sauce
1 - 14 1/2 oz. can Del Monte Diced Tomatoes with Basil, Garlic and Oregano
2 medium Vidalia onions, chopped and sauteed
1 lb. ground round, browned, seasoned with Kosher salt and ground pepper to taste
1 cup fresh spinach leaves
1/2 cup shredded parmesan cheese
5 oz. (about 1 1/4 cups) shredded 3 Cheese Italian cheese (Parmesan/ Aisago/Romano mix)
8 oz. Gouda cheese, sliced thin
2 fresh tomatoes, thinly sliced

WHAT TO DO:
Preheat oven to 400. Fit the pizza dough in the skillet, tearing it to cover the bottom and sides. Remove excess dough from edges, fill any thin areas with the excess dough. Press firmly.

Layer in order:
Half the parmesan, half the ground beef, half the onions, the entire can of diced tomatoes, half the 3 Cheese Italian, Half the tomato slices, half the jar of Classico, half the spinach leaves and cover with half the sliced Gouda.

Repeat the layers one more time. Note: diced tomatoes are used only once. Finish with tomatoes and Gouda on top and sprinkle with remaining shredded parmesan.

Bake for 30 minutes or until golden brown. This will serve up to six generous servings. Keeps well for leftovers the next day too.

Because onions were involved, Spot "hid" under a table in our bedroom. We loved the new verson even better than the first! More of a winter dish so we'll wait til Fall to try it again.