Cottage Pie

 Courtesy of Bob Greene's Best Life Cookbook.

I really enjoyed this for dinner. It was easy to prepare, took minimal cooking effort on my part, is packed FULL of veggies and made it seem like I had been slaving all day over it! This recipe made enough for Jason, Marie and I to have our fill, and Jason to have lunch the next day.

Ingredients:
 2 medium potatoes, skin on
2 tsp. olive oil
1/4 tsp. salt
Cooking Spray
2 large carrots, peeled and finely chopped
1 onion, chopped
1 pound lean ground beef or turkey
3-4 cups spinach, well-washed

  Kitchenware:
Pot, large enough to boil potatoes in
Skillet
9-inch pan

For the Potatoes:
Place the potatoes in a pot and cover with water. Bring to a boil, and cook until tender, about 20 minutes. Drain the potatoes, add the oil and salt and mash until smooth. (I discarded the oil and used butter instead. I'll take a few extra calories for the flavor. I didn't like the taste of just the oil.)


While the potatoes are cooking, prepare the beef mixture:
 Preheat the oven to 375. (If your dish can fit in a toaster oven, it does well in it  as well!) Heat a skillet over medium heat, and lightly coat it with cooking spray. Add the carrots and onion and cook until slightly browned, about 4 minutes, stirring often. Add the meat and cook until browned, about 5 minutes. Turn off the heat and stir the spinach into the beef mixture.

In the oven-safe pan, place the beef mixture, and cover with the mashed potatoes. Bake in the oven for 10 minutes if cooking immediately, or about 20 minutes if it's been refrigerated. After baking, set to broil for 5 minutes, until the tops of the potatoes are browned. Serve.

Nutritional Information: (exactly as the recipe is posted) 4 servings, per serving: 282 Calories, 27g Protein, 24g Carbs, 5g Fiber, 4g Sugars, 8g Fat, 3 g Sat Fat, 69 mg Cholesterol, 68 mg Calcium, 276 mg sodium.

Scalloped Potatoes... Mad Hungry Style!

Since Oprah is the devil, and took over Discovery Health at the beginning of the year, I've become a fan of Martha Stewart's show in the mornings. Afterwards, Lucinda Scala Quinn hosts a show called Mad Hungry.(After watching an episode, you'll understand why) I already had steaks marinating for tonight, when her episode featured Steak and Potatoes (score!). Grocery shopping was postponed, as I HAD to watch this episode. Lucinda's potatoes of choice were scalloped. I've always steered clear of making these from scratch, as it is much more convenient  to add water to the box that Betty Crocker makes. I have been so wrong! Literally, she used 5 ingredients (4 if you only use cream) and it was so simple! I had everything to make it at home, but decided to go with her cheese of choice, Muenster. (Yes, I know it's almost $6 for a pound of Muenster, but it is WELL worth the coinage!) I didn't add in the carmelized onion that she did in her version (Jason's not a fan), but I bet it would be a lovely addition. For all that is holy in the food world, PLEASE buy a block of cheese and shred it at home. Not only does it save you money, BUT you don't have added preservatives and cornstarch in your cheese, and it melts a lot better!

Ingredients:
5-6 Medium Potatoes (I used Russets, but Yukons would be yummy too!)
2 c Heavy Cream (or 1 c cream and 1 c milk)
A few tablespoons of unsalted butter
2 c shredded cheese (Muenster)


  Kitchenware:
Peeler (or knife)
Knife
Cutting Board
Baking Dish (I used a 13x9 pan, but if you want thicker layers, go with a smaller pan)

Preheat oven to 375. Peel potatoes, and then thinly slice them. Pour a small amount of Cream onto your baking dish, just enough to cover the bottom. We are going to make three layers, so portion properly from here.Create a layer of potatoes, overlapping them a little. Add a layer of grated cheese, some more cream, salt and pepper. Repeat this until your layers are finished. On your final layer of cheese, add a few dabs of butter on top to help brown it once in the oven.
Cover with foil, and bake for 30 minutes, uncover, and bake for an additional 30 minutes.

Don't be afraid to experiment with cheese combinations! Let me know what you think, and how it turns out with your choice of cheese!

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