Shepard's Pie

My brother was in town this weekend and since he doesn't get home made yumminess very often, we asked him what he wanted for dinner. One of his favorites is Shepards Pie, so I decided to give it a try. Mom has made it before and it was quite delicious, but she was with my other brother today (he was having another surgery), so it was up to me. I really liked this dish. It was pretty easy and quite delicious!

Shepard's Pie

3 pounds potatoes peeled
3-4 Tbsp margarine
1/4-1/2 cup milk
Salt and Pepper to taste

2 pounds ground beef
1/4 cup flour
2 cups beef broth
2 Tbsp ketchup
1 Tbsp worcestershire sauce
2-3 cups frozen mixed vegetables (put as much as is suited to your taste)
Salt and Pepper to taste

Shredded cheese (I used sharp cheddar)

1. Preheat oven to 400F
2. Fill a large pot with peeled potatoes and cover with water. Bring to a boil and then reduce heat to medium- medium-high. Cook until fork tender.
3. Drain potatoes and then return to pot. Add butter and milk (add milk in parts so moisture is to your liking, you may need less or more milk). Using hand mixer, mix/mash ingredients together and well mashed and combined. Add salt and pepper to taste.
4. Heat large pan over high heat. Add beef and brown. Drain excess fat and return to pan.
5. Add flour to beef and allow to cook over medium high heat for 1 minute. Add beef broth and bring to a boil. Add in frozen vegetables, ketchup, and worcestershire sauce. Stir until well combined. Allow to heat through. Add salt and pepper to taste.
6. Put vegetable and beef mixture in large casserole/lasagna pan. Cover with mashed potatoes. Sprinkle shredded cheese over mashed potatoes. Bake uncovered until heated through and cheese melted.

Au Gratin Potatoes

Mom made us a DELICIOUS ham for dinner and I was trying to think of something to go along with it. We had half of a bag (1.5 pounds) red skinned potatoes left from a dinner last week, so I decided to use them up. I didn't want to make mashed potatoes and risk us being tired of them by Thanksgiving. I decided to go with an au gratin potato dish. It was a hit!
Now my review, it called for a whole onion. While it was very tasty, I would prefer less onion, and I think it would be fine with even no onion. Just something you may want to keep in mind.

Au Gratin Potatoes

1.5 pounds potatoes (I used baby red potatoes and I left the skin on)- sliced to 1/4 inch thick slices
1 sweet onion (optional, or use less) diced
2 garlic cloves minced
3 Tbsp butter (I used Smart Taste margarine)
3 Tbsp flour
1/2- 1 tsp salt
2 cups milk
1.5 cups cheese (I used a mixture of colby-jack, american, and italian cheese)

1. Preheat the oven to 375F
2. Arrange half of the potatoes in a greased 1 quart casserole dish. Cover with onions and garlic. Cover with the rest of the potatoes.
3. In a medium saucepan over medium heat, melt butter. Add flour and whisk to combine. Cooke for 1 minute. Add milk and whisk until thickened (almost boiling- I usually have to turn my heat up, but if you do, make sure to whisk continuously). When thickened, add cheese and whisk until combined.
4. Pour cheese mixture over potatoes. Cover with foil and cook at 375F for 1 hour (or until potatoes are cooked through)

Cheesy mashed potatoes

This Christmas I got the urge to try a bunch of new and different recipes. I was watching the food network (as always) and Giada De Laurentis was making this recipe for mashed potatoes. They sounded so yummy I knew I had to try them. I know it not a great idea to try new recipes for the first time on a holiday, but when else am I going to make such a decadent dish?
Well I made it, and EVERYONE loved them! My sister told me that my niece never eats mashed potatoes....well she ate her serving and asked for more! I got so many compliments. This may become a family tradition!

Cheesy Baked Mashed Potatoes
Courtesy of Giada De Laurentis
(Printable Recipe)

4 pounds peeled and cut into small pieces (so they boil faster)- I used 5 pounds of Yukon Gold
1 cup whole milk
1 stick butter melted
1 1/2 cups grated mozzarella cheese
1 cup grated parmesean
Salt and Pepper to taste
2 Tbsp plain bread crumbs

1. Preheat the oven to 350 F. Grease a 13x9 inch baking pan and set aside.
2. Cook potatoes in salted boiling water until tender. Drain the potatoes and return to same pot. Mash well.
3. Mix in milk and melted butter. Mix in mozzarella and 3/4 cup parmasean cheese. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
4. Transfer potatoes to prepared baking sheet. Mix remaining parmesean cheese and bread crumbs. Sprinkle evenly over potatoes.
5. Bake until golden brown.

Potato Salad

I used to always make my grandmother's potato salad recipe. It was always my favorite. Then one day, we went to a neighbor's house and she has a potato salad with some herbs mixed in. It was so delicious. So I thought to combine the two and YUM! A great potato salad was born.

Ingredients

3 lbs red creamer potatos boiled, cooled, and peeled (I boil mine then remove the peels when they cool)
1/2 cup mayo
3 Tbsp red wine vinegar
1/2 bunch parsley
4 green onions (scallions or you could use chives)
salt and pepper to taste

1. Cut potatos into large pieces (so they won't break apart when mixing, otherwise you will wind up with mashed potato salad)
2. Finely chop green onions and parsley (I use my food processor) and add to the potatoes
3. Add mayo, red wine vinegar, salt and pepper and fold together.

Thats it. It is that easy