The best shepherds pie EVER!

My recent trip to Florida took me to a lifelong friends home where I was served the best shepherds pie I've ever had. He was nice enough to share the recipe with me.

I'll share the link to the original recipe, however, his version was easier and possibly better. <http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/alton-brown/shepherds-pie-recipe2.html>  I tweaked it in my own way as well. What's the point of following a recipe to the line when your taste buds might enjoy a change? Hope you like it as much as I did! Now if my kids could just like it as much....

Shepherds pie:

1 hour 30 minutes from start to finish is expected. 

Ingredients

For the potatoes:

1 1/2 pounds potatoes

1/4 half and half (I used milk)

2 ounces unsalted butter 

3/4 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper

1 egg YOLK

For the meat filling:

2 tablespoons canola oil (I used olive oil)

1 cup chopped onion 

2 carrots, peeled and diced small

2 cloves garlic, minced (I used garlic powder)

1 1/2 pounds ground lamb (I used 2 pounds of ground turkey, he used beef which has a better texture in this)

1 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon of ground black pepper

2 tablespoons flour

2 teaspoons tomato paste (We used ketchup)

1 cup chicken broth

1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce

2 teaspoons freshly chopped rosemary leaves

1 teaspoon freshly chopped thyme leaves

1/2 cup fresh or frozen corn kernels

1/2 cup fresh or frozen English peas

The directions provided by the recipe found in the link shared are long and can be summed up easier.

The basic version: make the mashed potato layer like you would normal mashed potatoes but with the ingredients listed. Also, measure out the potatoes to how much your family uses. 

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. 

While the potatoes are cooking, start working on the meat filling layer as follows:

Place your oil in a pan and set over medium-high heat. Once the oil shimmers, add the onions and carrots and sauté just until they begin to take on color, about 3-4 minutes. (I added bell pepper as well.) Add your garlic and stir. Add your meat, salt and pepper and cook until brown and cooked through. Sprinkle the meat with the flour and toss to coat while cooking another minute. Add the tomato paste (ketchup), chicken broth, Worcestershire sauce and herbs (you can use any herbs you like), stirring to combine. Bring to a boil, reduce heat to low, cover and simmer slowly 10-12 minutes or until the sauce thickens slightly. 

Add the corn and peas to the mixture and spread evenly in your pan.

Top with your mashed potatoes. Place on the middle rack in the oven and bake for 25 minutes or until the potatoes turn a golden brown.

Let it cool slightly before serving. When I pulled mine out, I topped with cheese and set back in the warm oven to melt. The kids usually prefer cheese. 

Quick kitchen tips:

If you use bell peppers and onions, make sure you take time to chop and dice them then freeze when you get home from the store.

Then it's quicker to use when you're cooking. 

Chicken étouffée recipe

The weather is changing and cold fronts are moving in. With this, warmer foods are far more pleasurable. One of my favorite recipes is Chicken Etouffée. Its a Cajun tradition that my family ate more often when we were around my Nana and Papa. While I haven't mastered it like they had, I'd like to think that I came close. My children and even my picky husband enjoy it from time to time. Bon appetit!

You will need:

3 large chicken breasts
Any spices you want (I use oregano and garlic)
Oil (about 3-4 tablespoons)
3 tablespoons all purpose flour
Onions chopped (how much you want. I use about half an onion)
1 green bell pepper
1 red bell pepper
Fresh garlic if you want (I use powder)
2 cups of chicken broth
1 1/2 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
2 tablespoon tomato paste
1 teaspoon Tabasco sauce (I add mine to my food and not to the whole pot, and its more than 1 teaspoon)
1 bunch of green onions, trimmed and chopped

 You will need to cook rice to eat with it, so make however much your family uses.

Time to cook!
Cut each chicken breast into strips then season with your spices. Heat a large, heavy, covered pot over medium-high heat until it is hot. Then add a couple spoons of oil until it's hot (lightly bubbling). Add chicken and cook until light brown. Put the chicken aside and add the rest of the oil.
Add the flour and cook, stirring constantly until it's a golden brown. (3-5 minutes) This is your roux. Add the onions, bell peppers, and garlic - stirring for 5 minutes. Stir in the chicken broth, Worcestershire sauce, tomato paste and hot sauce. Bring to a boil, stirring constantly. Add the browned chicken to the pan.
Cover and simmer over low heat for 30 minutes, stirring occasionally until the chicken is tender. Skim any fat from the surface, then stir in the green onions. Serve hot over cooked rice.

***I enjoy it spicy. Adding hot sauce, or even red pepper to give it some tang is always a plus.

 Serves 8, though you can certainly freeze portions to be used later.

Caramel Apple cake, oh my!

Its the wonderful season of caramel apples and fall flavors! I was wanting to try something new in cake form to bring to work. The last treats I made looked like Easter ones.

They were colorful with several different flavorings for the icing.

 

I went searching for recipes and found this one: Moist Caramel Apple Cake. That wasn't quite the recipe for me though. So I decided to experiment with that one and my Plain White Cake recipe. I wanted to create something a little more special. I came up with the following!

 

Caramel Apple Bundt Cake

 

What you will need: 

 

Cake batter

1 cup white sugar

1/2 cup butter

2 eggs

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

1 3/4 teaspoons baking powder

1 cup milk

2 Granny Smith apples, peeled and coarsely chopped

1 pkg. (3.4 oz) Jell-O Vanilla Instant pudding

3/4 cup water

 

Drizzle

1 can (13.4 oz) Nestle Le Lechera caramel

3 tablespoons milk

 

Mix it up:

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees.

 

In the same order as listed, mix your ingredients together for the cake batter. Spray your bundt pan with cooking spray and put some larger chopped pieces of apple in the bottom.

Then pour your batter on top.

I had enough extra batter to make some cupcakes as well, since I doubled the recipe. I put the batter in the paper cups and put a piece of apple slice on top of each one.

Bake 25-30 minutes or until the knife comes out clean.

It make take longer depending on your stove.

Loosen the cake from the pan and flip over onto your cake serving dish. Let it cool completely. Mix the caramel and milk together to make the drizzle.

Warm in the microwave until smooth. Let it slightly thicken and pour over the top of your cake just before serving.

 

Enjoy!

Italian sausage and bean soup recipe

I made this the other night and was so happy to find my picky kids enjoying it. 

2 tablespoons olive oil, divided use

1 pound Italian sausages, casings removed 

1 1/2 cups each chopped onion and diced carrots

1 cup chopped celery (optional)

1/4 cup each red and green bell pepper 

1/4 cup green onion

1 tablespoon garlic, minced in oil (I used powdered)

1 tablespoon of Italian-blend seasoning

5-6 cups of chicken broth 

1 can Italian styled diced tomatoes

1 can red kidney beans, drained

1 cup of pasta

Place 1 tablespoon of oil in a 6 quart heavy pot over medium-high heat; add sausage and cook, breaking up into small pieces. Remove to a plate and set aside. 

Add remaining oil to the same pot. Sauté onions, carrots, bell peppers, green onion, celery, garlic and Italian seasoning. Cook 7-9 minutes or until tender; then return sausage to pot. 

Stir in broth, tomatoes and beans. Bring soup to a boil. 

If you are serving the soup soon, go ahead and add the pasta and cook until it's done. 

Enjoy!!!