Recipe: Shepherd's Pie (Easy!!)

Mashed potatoes, cheese and ground beef. Mmmm, sign me up! Here's another one guaranteed to produce leftovers, or obviously could be halved to serve a smaller or less inclined for leftovers type family.


2 lbs ground beef
2 jars beef gravy (we like Heinz Homestyle Savory Beef Gravy)
1 15 oz can peas and carrots
1 box Instant Mashed potatoes (2 pouches) - we like Betty Crocker Butter and Herb flavor
Onion - 1 medium chopped, or 1 cup frozen chopped
2 eggs
2c shredded cheddar cheese
Salt and Pepper and dried parsley, to taste



Preheat oven to 375*
Brown beef and onion in large oven proof skillet, drain
Cook Potatoes according to package directions (both pouches)
Mix 2 eggs into potatoes until blended
Mix gravy into beef, season with salt, pepper and parsley
Drain peas & carrots, mix into beef
Spread potatoes over beef mixture
Sprinkle cheese over potatoes
Bake for 30 minutes



This is great. Very loved in our house!

Recipe: Cheesy Beefy Bake

There isn't a man or child alive who doesn't like cheese with their beef. Here's a good one that sticks to the ribs and is an Italian themed goodie.



1.5 lbs ground beef
chopped onion (1 med, or about 1 cup frozen)
1 26 oz jar of spaghetti sauce
8 oz package cream cheese, softened
1/3 c sour cream
~ 2c Parmesan cheese
1c Bisquick
1 1/2c milk
Italian seasoning



Pre-heat oven to 375*
Spray 9x13 dish with cooking spray
Cook beef and onion in skillet until brown, drain
Stir in spaghetti sauce
Pour beef mixture into baking dish

In a small bowl, mix cream cheese, sour cream and 1/2 c Parmesan cheese and 1/4 tsp Italian Seasoning
Spoon over beef mixture

In medium bowl, mix 1c Parmesan cheese, Bisquick and milk
Pour over beef mixture

Bake 30 min

During the last 5 minutes, sprinkle with more Parmesan cheese and Italian seasoning



The kids and Jason love this. Unfortunately, my kids are sensitive to tomatoes, so we don't have it that often. But it's a great staple in the rotation!

Recipe - Mexican Pork Chops

I've been trying to serve less red meat, but have had trouble finding ways to mix in pork, chicken or even fish that everyone is happy with. Our new pork stand-by is to marinate some chops in low-sodium Dale's for about 30 minutes and then toss them on the grill. It's super easy and really good. But that about summed up my pork chop resume. Last night I tried something new that fit into my favorite kinds of meals - those that have ingredients that are mostly dumped out of something, and everything is contained in one dish.

Here ya go....

Mexican Style Pork Chops

4 Center Cut Pork Chops, bone in (pretty thick - about 3/4" or so)
Can black beans, drain & rinse
Can yellow corn, drain
1 cup instant rice, uncooked
1 medium onion, chopped (or about a cup of frozen chopped onion)
1 can tomato soup
1 1/4 cup water
2 tsp chili powder
1/2 tsp oregano
1/2 tsp salt
1/8 tsp pepper
2 tbsp cooking oil
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese

Pre-heat oven to 375
Heat oil in large oven proof skillet with Med-High heat
Brown pork chops in oil on both sides, about 3 min per side
Remove chops from heat and set aside
Saute onion in same skillet until tender
Add all remaining ingredients, except cheese
Bring to boil, then turn off heat
Lay pork chops on top of mixture
Bake in oven for 25-30 minutes (depends on thickness of chops)
Sprinkle with cheese for the last 5 minutes in the oven

Family feedback: Kids and Jason liked it, and we all had plenty for lunch leftovers. You could add more chops if you needed to.

Experimental Cooking

As I have mentioned oh, at least 10,000 times before, I stay pretty busy with work, kids and life in general. For some reason I like to cook most weeknights - the rare exception being if someone has to work really late, or I find myself out of a key ingredient. Come to think of it, running out of key ingredients is pretty common. Just ask Jason about trips to Publix to buy a can of cream of mushroom soup (he comes back with 5.)

I'm not sure why I run out of stuff. Every Sunday I diligently make a list of what we are going to have as meals for the week. I take inventory of what items I have on hand, then make a list of everything else that I need. Then off we go, the whole family, to the grocery store with list in hand.

The list creating process usually takes me a looooooong time because I am always bored with the same old/same old stuff that I make. To try to freshen things up, I search cookbooks, websites or just make stuff up to create new things. Jason will tell you - some work out, and some do not which again leads to an impromptu pizza night. Most of the things that I choose are meant to be fast and kid friendly. They are not necessarily the healthiest option (read: I like cheese) or the most economical. I realize that I could save money by not going for convenience items, but for me it makes sense to use frozen chopped onion or green peppers, pre-shredded cheese, etc to speed up the prep time. Again, my goal is to provide a hot meal that the kids (including Jason) will eat AND we have leftovers for the next day's lunches.

Truth is, I like to cook and try new things. So for all those busy folks out there, I thought I would share. I can't promise that they are any good, but I will share the feedback from my family and what we thought of it. And feel free to share ideas back with me!