Shepherd's Pie

Easy Shepherd’s Pie

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American favorite shepherd's pie recipe, casserole with ground beef, vegetables such as carrots, corn, and peas, topped with mashed potatoes.

• Prep time: 15 minutes
• Cook time: 50 minutes
• Yield: Serves four.

Ingredients

• 1 1/2 to 2 pounds potatoes (about 3 large potatoes), peeled and quartered
• 8 Tablespoons (1 stick) butter
• 1 medium onion, chopped (about 1 1/2 cups)
• 1-2 cups vegetables—diced carrots, corn, peas
• 1 1/2 lbs ground round beef
• 1/2 cup beef broth
• 1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
• Salt, pepper, other seasonings of choice

Method

1 Place the peeled and quartered potatoes in medium sized pot. Cover with at least an inch of cold water. Add a teaspoon of salt. Bring to a boil, reduce to a simmer, and cook until tender (about 20 minutes.
2 While the potatoes are cooking, melt 4 tablespoons of the butter in a large sauté pan on medium heat. Add the chopped onions and cook until tender, about 6 to 10 minutes. If you are including vegetables, add them according to their cooking time. Carrots should be cooked with the onions, because they take as long to cook as the onions do. If you are including peas or corn, add them toward the end of the cooking of the onions, or after the meat starts to cook, as they take very little cooking time.

4 Add ground beef to the pan with the onions and vegetables. Cook until no longer pink. Season with salt and pepper. Add the worcestershire sauce and beef broth. Bring the broth to a simmer and reduce heat to low. Cook uncovered for 10 minutes, adding more beef broth if necessary to keep the meat from drying out.
5 When the potatoes are done cooking (a fork can easily pierce), remove them from the pot and place them in a bowl with the remaining 4 Tbsp of butter. Mash with a fork or potato masher, and season with salt and pepper to taste.

6 Preheat oven to 400°F. Spread the beef, onions, and vegetables (if using) in an even layer in a large baking dish (8x13 casserole). Spread the mashed potatoes over the top of the ground beef. Rough up the surface of the mashed potatoes with a fork so there are peaks that will get well browned. You can even use a fork to make creative designs in the mashed potatoes.
7 Place in a 400°F oven and cook until browned and bubbling, about 30 minutes. If necessary, broil for the last few minutes to help the surface of the mashed potatoes brown.

Suggested variations:
Put a layer of creamed corn between the ground beef and the mashed potatoes.
Sprinkle grated cheddar cheese over the top of the mashed potatoes before baking.

Read more: http://www.simplyrecipes.com/recipes/easy_shepherds_pie/#ixzz3PPTCVuNE

Sweet Cornbread

SWEET CORNBREAD

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This is excellent cornbread...especially topped with honey-butter!  To make cornbread muffins, just spoon batter into greased or paper-lined muffin cups and bake for about 18 minutes. .

1/2 cup cornmeal
1-1/2 cups flour
2/3 cup sugar
1 tbsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt
1/3 cup oil
3 tbsp. melted butter
1 tbsp. honey
2 eggs, beaten
1-1/4 cups milk
Honey-butter, optional .

1. Combine cornmeal, flour, sugar, baking powder and salt in medium bowl.
2. Add oil, butter, honey, eggs and milk; stir until just blended.
3. Pour into greased 8-inch square baking pan. Bake in preheated 350º oven for 35 minutes.

Yield: 9 large squares. .

*To make honey-butter, whip 1/2 cup butter with electric mixer until fluffy.  Mix in 2 tbsp. honey, or to taste.