I did it ALL by myself mommy!

When I first started cooking a was a stickler at following a recipe to the letter. As I get a bit older, more lazy or maybe just more skilled, I realize you can tweak recipes and make them your own without messing up! (most the time) Well there are a lot of dishes I make like casseroles and such that I know the basic ingredients and kind of just throw them all together. You really can't mess us a casserole! Sometimes when I don't know the exact ingredients for something I will browse allrecipes.com and foodnetwork.com and get the basic idea for a dish and then create something from all the ideas I got. Well the other night I was trying to think of something simple, yummy and different to make for Paul.

I decided to ask my clients to name a dish they loved growing up and the first answer I got was Shepherd's pie. YUMMY, you can not go wrong with meat, veggies, cheese and potatoes in one dish! BINGO, I was going to make Shepherds pie! Well remembering back in my last post where I do not make anything for Paul without getting his opinion? Well I texted him asking if he liked shepherd's pie. I got the response "What is THAT?" UM HELLO, Again I wonder, is he even American? Then again I remember, farm, small town, Enterprise Utah. HAHA If you have met Paul he does NOT seem like a small town boy.

ANYWAYS. I explained the basic ingredients and he was in! I have made it before but it had been awhile and I always forget what tomato based product is best mixed with the meat and potatoes. Well checking out my fav food websites I found numerous recipes with a cream of mushroom soup base. Now I have always grown up with a tomato base but this sounded awesome! Also Paul tends to not like things with a tomato base so I decided to do a cream based shepherds pie. Well can I tell you I came up with a FABULOUS dish that is a mix between stroganoff and shepherd's pie. SO was born.......

Shepherd Street Stroganoff Pie
(I grew up in mass on Shepherd street so I thought it was fitting!)

1 lbs ground beef
1 medium onion, diced
3 cloves garlic, minced
2 cups sliced mushrooms
1 can of corn
1 can of green beans
8 medium red potatoes
1 cup sour cream
1 small can cream of mushroom soup
2 TBS butter
splash of milk
1 cup monterey jack cheese(or more if you like it cheesy!)
salt/pepper to taste

Preheat oven to 375. Wash and cube red potatoes(I like skin on) and cover with cold water and salt. (tip alert-If you put potatoes in warm or hot water to start with the outside cooks faster and the potatoe gets mushy on the outside and harder on the inside!) Bring to a boil, turn down slightly and boil until the potatoes are tender enough to mash. Drain.

In a deep skillet brown the ground beef and drain. Return to the skillet on medium heat and add onions, garlic and mushrooms. Do not cook all the way through, the veggies will finish getting tender in the oven. Next add 1/2 cup sour cream, mushroom soup, corn, beans and a bit of salt and pepper. Place in the bottom of a 9x13 pan.

Return potatoes to pot, add butter, milk and the remaining sour cream and mash to the consistency you like of mashed potatoes. Also add salt and pepper to taste. Spread Potatoes on top of the meat mixture and cover with cheese. You can use any kind of cheese, I like monterey jack or colby jack best! Cover with tin foil and bake 30 minutes. Remove tin foil and bake an additional 10-15 minutes until cheese is bubbly and fully melted! As Rachael Ray would say. YUM O!