The Covered Dish - Easy Shepherd’s Pie

Today the family started asking about 4pm, ‘What’s for supper?’ Seriously; I had no idea at the time. Sometimes I’ll have things in the refrigerator and I think I can make something with them, only to find they’ve been eaten! Sounds a bit familiar doesn’t it?
This evening I was shocked to find the extra pound of burger with onions untouched in the frig, I couldn’t believe the luck. A few minutes later I announced Shepherd’s pie was the main entree, with a fresh salad.
This led to an interesting conversation with our son, Phillip, who enjoys cooking himself.
Gee, I wonder how he got those genes! He likes to share some of my recipes with his insurance clients, but he told me this evening that he adds more steps to my directions and often simplifies the recipe. He explained to me that many people do well just to stir something simple up to eat , and my recipes were sometimes too much. I can see where he is traveling One easy example would be the use of canned creamed soups. I don’t like to use them when I write a new recipe, but Phillip’s realization truly hit home with me tonight. Therefore; I’m sharing a super simple way to make Shepherd’s Pies. Like tacos, there are a million and one ways to prepare this format. In fact, one of my favorite shepherd pies is a cowboy pie. I’ll share my recipe from this evening along with another direction using chicken.
Next week, I’ll be sharing a recipe Phillip came up with for his clients, taking a bit from my recipes and adding his favorite things for an easy chicken dish. I have to tell you this just pleases me something fierce!
Making Shepherd’s pies also reminds me how handy it is to have canned meats on the cupboard shelves. Several things came to mind this evening as I prepared my meal, I could see how handy canned ground beef, chicken and stew meat could be.
I’ve canned all of the above, and the ease of having meat ready to go into a dish is a dream! If you travel by RV you’ll also see how you can save precious freezer space by canning meats.
Our office is still busy helping the victims of the apartment fire 2 weeks ago today in Kimberling City. We are slowly seeing people find new residencies and the entire community has jumped in to help them re-establish their homes. After completing the column I need to hit the sewing machine, because I’m making a window valance for one client, it’s a blessing just to be able to help. ErvIn and I will go help her put it up tomorrow evening. OK, let’s set this super simple recipe and indulge in a great week.
Simply yours, The Covered Dish.


Easy Shepherd’s Pie
Preheat oven to 350 degrees, spray a 9 x 13 baking pan.
1 lb of ground beef fried with chopped onion
1 bag of frozen microwave mixed vegies, cooked in microwave & drained
1 can of chili mixed beans
1 can veges of your choice or 2 cups of fresh veges of choice
1 can Golden Mushroom soup
3⁄4 to 1 lb. Pepper jack cheese, cut into small chunks
4-6 finely chopped fresh green onions.
3 cups mashed potatoes or 1 regular pre-prepared ‘real’ mashed potatoes, seasoned.
In a large bowl, place all ingredients except for the cheese and mashed potatoes.
Mix well, evenly spread into prepared baking dish. Take small chunks of cheese and evenly disperse them, pushing into the mixture. Lastly; evenly spread the seasoned mashed potatoes over the top. You can add spices if you choose, no salt is necessary.
Sprinkle paprika on top if you feel it needs more color. I baked ours until it was nice and bubbly around the edges, which was around 40-45 minutes.
Switch to chicken and consider using spring mixed vegetables, cream of chicken soup, a creamy white cheese, and either potatoes or biscuits on top. If you do biscuits on top don’t add them until the last 15 or 20 minutes of cooking to avoid over-baking.
Casserole Bind: This casserole ‘scoops’ out best, if you want the filling of the pie to be firmer, consider sprinkling a couple tablespoons of cornstarch into the meat portion.
We served only a salad with the meal, which means folks will eat more of the casserole.
Try adding a bread with the meal or dessert, this way you’ll have some leftovers!