Easy Shepherd's Pie

Last night I made Shepherd's pie. I found the recipe 5 years ago but I don't remember where.

1 lb ground beef (I used pork because I was out of beef)
2 cups mashed potatoes
2 cloves garlic
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
4 oz cream cheese
4 cups canned or frozen veggies (i used green beans)
1 cup beef gravy

Preheat oven to 375. Brown meat in skillet. Meanwhile, mix potatoes, cream cheese, 1/2 cup cheddar cheese and the garlic until blended.
Drain meat. Mix veggies and gravy with meat. Add meat mix to 9-inch dish; cover with potato mix and cheddar cheese.
Bake 20 min

cooking 2013

So far this year I haven't done too much cooking but I have a couple dishes I'd like to share.
Pineapple Fried Rice.
I cooked the rice in pineapple juice and then stir fried veggies, pineapple, and an egg then added the rice. It was very good. The rice had an excellent flavor.

I also made Cornmeal waffles with chili
I received mixed reviews from people about the idea but my husband and i thought it was good.

http://www.pauladeen.com/recipes/recipe_view/cornmeal_waffles_with_spicy_chili/
I didn't use the chili recipes; instead I used canned hormel chili.

Recipes for week 2/20

Monday
Chicken and Parsnip Soup
1 1/2 tsp olive oil
3/4 cup thinly diagonally sliced parsnips (2 parsnips)
3/4 cup thinly sliced shallots (2 shallots)
1 garlic clove, minced
2 1/2 cups chicken broth
1 cup water
1 cup chickpeas, rinsed and drained
1 cup shredded cooked chicken
1/2 tsp black pepper
1/4 tsp salt
1/8 tsp hot sauce
1 thyme sprig
2 tbsp chopped fresh parsley

1. Heat oil in a medium saucepan over medium-high heat. Add parsnips, shallots, and garlic; saute 3 minutes. Add broth and next 7 ingredients (through thyme); bring to a simmer, and cook 10 minutes or until parsnips are tender. Remove from heat; stir in parsley.

Apple and Avocado Salad with Tangerine Dressing
http://allrecipes.com/recipe/apple-avocado-salad-with-tangerine-dressing/detail.aspx

Tuesday
Chicken-Apple Sausage and Pasta Soup
http://www.wholeliving.com/130375/chicken-apple-sausage-and-pasta-soup
Grecian Green Beans
http://allrecipes.com/recipe/grecian-green-beans-in-tomato-sauce/detail.aspx

Wednesday
Leftovers

Thursday
Hearty Lasagna Soup
http://www.campbellkitchen.com/RecipeDetail.aspx?recipeId=50689
Marinated Veggies
http://allrecipes.com/recipe/marinated-veggies/detail.aspx

Friday
Mexican Zucchini Cheese Soup
http://allrecipes.com/recipe/mexican-zucchini-cheese-soup/detail.aspx
Roasted Broccoli Gratin with Blue Cheese
http://www.pillsbury.com/community/discussions/29/1979/1/

Last week recipes in review

Well, the sweet potato burritos are always delicious and filling and the shrimp salad is delicious
The Beef Peach Pie was one that my husband was leery about but he went back for thirds. It tastes like meatloaf with peaches on top. It works. The Spinach bread was good but I don't think my bread maker is. In the  last 30 minutes the loaf caved in. So it was good but dense and caved in the middle. Grrrr, I hate making bread but I'll keep practicing.
The honey lime enchiladas are awesome and so easy to make. I buy a cooked rotisserie chicken from the supermarket and pull it apart. For this recipe I only use half the chicken, the other half I put in a ziploc and freeze it. The tomato salad was a new recipe that I tried, it was very good and I think it would be very easy to throw it on top of lettuce to make it even more healthy.
The chili chicken soup was almost consumed with no leftovers. Everyone loved it. And so easy.
I didn't end up making the flautas since I wasn't feeling good on Friday, and the Moroccan beef and sweet potato fries I'm making tonight.

Recipes for week 1/30

Tonight we started with

Addictive Sweet Potato Burritos
http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Addictive-Sweet-Potato-Burritos/Detail.aspx
and
Avocado-Lime Shrimp Salad
http://allrecipes.com/recipe/avocado-lime-shrimp-salad-ensalada-de-camarones-con-aguacate-y-limon/

Tuesday
Beef Peach Pie
http://allrecipes.com/recipe/beef-peach-pie/detail.aspx
and
Spinach Bread
http://allrecipes.com/recipe/spinach-bread/detail.aspx

Wednesday
Leftovers

Thursday
Honey-Lime Enchiladas
http://allrecipes.com/recipe/honey-lime-enchiladas/detail.aspx
and
Beefsteak Tomato Salad
http://allrecipes.com/recipe/honey-lime-enchiladas/detail.aspx

Friday, potluck at church. I think I'll bring flautas.

Ground Beef Flautas                                            

1 lb ground beef

1 ( 8 ounce jar) picante sauce

¼ tsp. cumin

36 corn tortillas*

Shredded cheddar and jack cheese

Preheat oven to 350

Cook ground beef in skillet, drain fat.

Mix cooked beef, salsa and cumin in bowl.

In small skillet over medium-high heat, place tortilla in oil for 1-2 seconds on each side to soften. Place on plate with paper towel. Repeat for all tortillas.

Put small amount of beef mix in center of tortilla, sprinkle with cheese and roll up.

Place rolled tortilla on greased cookie sheet. Sprinkle cheese on top.

Place in oven for 15 to 25 mins, until tortillas are a little crispy and golden brown.

Use flour tortillas as an easier option

Saturday

Chili Chicken Soup with Cilantro dumplings

http://www.bettycrocker.com/recipes/chili-chicken-soup-with-cilantro-dumplings/283839dd-38b0-425b-9908-1a4ac269b2cf

Sunday

Moroccan Spiced Beef

2 tbs cumin seeds

2 tsp coriander seeds

2 lbs beef stew meat

1 onion, chopped

4 carrots, chopped

4 parsnips, peeled, chopped

4 cloves garlic, minced

1 tsp peppercorns

1 cinnamon stick

2 tbs flour

1 can diced tomatoes

1 1/2 cup beef broth

1 tbs lemon juice

1 tbs tomato paste

1/2 tsp cayenne

Cook seeds dry over medium heat, 3 mins. Set aside and put in spice grinder.

Add all ingredients to crock pot except lemon juice and cayenne. Cook low 8 hrs. Add lemon juice and cayenne and stir. Serve over couscous.

and 

Cinnamon-Spiced Sweet Potato Fries

http://allrecipes.com/recipe/cinnamon-spiced-sweet-potato-fries/

recipes from last week

Well, I am excited to say I actually made everything I planned to make last week; except the cookies which I'm making tonight. That doesn't usually happen. I plan, shop, and then I only end up making a few of the dishes. But this week I made them all. I guess that says I'm better at planning. All the recipes I made last week were recipes I have made before so my reviews are all positive.
The ham n' cheese soup is always a hit and always very filling. To the Spicy Beef I add a drained can of green beans in with the meat at the end to incorporate the flavors and heat up the beans. The cassoulet was an adventure this week. I was so sure I had all of the ingredients, I didn't check ahead of time. I usually use a Jimmy Dean ground sausage roll for the sausage but I was out so I used kelbasa. The flavor was fine, the mistake was smelling it throughout the house all day with my delicate pregnancy nose. But ok. I also usually substitute white wine for apple juice but, lo and behold, I was out. Luckily, chicken broth is an acceptable substitute. I also didn't have the cannelloni beans so used chickpeas instead. Really, I substituted almost all of the ingredients.
The Cambodian chicken stew is always delicious. The na'an bread was the adventure this time. I have a black thumb when it comes to making bread. It doesn't rise. This time I'm pretty sure I had bad yeast. It didn't proof, and then didn't rise. But I used the dough anyway since na'an is a flatbread. It was dense but still tasted good.

Next Week's Menu

So here is my menu for next week starting on Sunday. I’ll review them as I make them

Sunday

Ham'n Cheese Soup    from Fix it and Forget it

2 cups pototoes, cubed

1 1/2 cups water

1 1'2 cups cooked ham

1 large onion, chopped

3 Tbs. butter

3 Tbsp. flour

1/4 tsp. black pepper

3 cups milk

6 ozs. shredded cheese

1 cup frozen broccoli, thawed and chopped

Combine all ingredients except last two into crock pot

Cook on low 6-8 hrs.

Add cheese and broccoli, Stir well. Cook an additional 15 min.

Monday

Spicy Beef                    from my mom. Not actually spicy.                

1 lb.  ground Beef

½ onion2 cloves garlic

3 tbs. fish sauce

3 tbs. lemon juice

1 ¼ tbs. basil

½ tsp. grd. Chili pepper

Brown Burger, drain fat. Add onions and garlic. Add everything else and simmer over low heat until served.   Serve over bed of rice.

Tuesday

Slow Cooker Cassoulet 

http://allrecipes.com/recipe/slow-cooker-cassoulet/detail.aspx

Wednesday

Leftovers

Thursday

Cambodian Chicken Soup

http://allrecipes.com/recipe/cambodian-chicken-soup/detail.aspx

Naan bread

http://allrecipes.com/recipe/naan/detail.aspx

Friday

Taco Salad in homemade tortilla bowls  My recipe

Lettuce

Corn

Black olives

Taco meat

Salsa

Shredded Cheddar Cheese

Tortillas

Dessert

Coconut Macaroons  Atkins website (1 net carb per cookie) This ones for Aaron

Ingredients

• 1 cooking spray
• 4 large egg whites, at room temperature
• 2/3 Cup Splenda
• 1/2 Teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1/4 Teaspoon salt
• 2 Cups unsweetened shredded coconut

Directions

1. Heat oven to 325°F. Spray two baking sheets with oil spray. 
2. With an electric mixer on medium speed, beat egg whites until medium peaks form. Gradually beat in sugar substitute, vanilla extract and salt. Turn speed up to high and continue beating until stiff (but not dry) peaks form. 
3. Using a rubber spatula, fold in coconut. 
4. Drop tablespoon-sized mounds of mixture onto prepared baking sheets. Bake 15 minutes. Cool on sheets 1 minute before carefully transferring to wire racks to cool completely

The Start of the Recipes

I am starting to cook again this week. Yay. Of course, I am not really unpacked yet so it should make cooking more interesting as I search for cooking implements. We moved into a new apartment on Thursday. The movers came and delivered everything. We are in an apartment with a garage, the garage is a little bit down the street. I had the movers put some things in the garage but had them put all the boxes upstairs so I could sort through them. Well, now that I look at them, most of them will go in the garage. Crap for being on the third floor.

So Thursday I was getting stuff out of the corporate apartment. I was dragging a 40 lb bag of dog food down the stairs (again with the third floor) when the bottom decided to disintegrate. Dog food everywhere. Luckily I had just gone to the store and got one of those dog food containers. So there I was scooping up 40 lbs of dog food one cup at a time. Fun stuff huh?

Saturday we went to the new movie "Diary of a Wimpy Kid" or something like that. It was pretty funny. I recommend it. Nothing else out really looks good. I mean it is either R or stupid.

So here is my menu for the week, feel free to cook along with me. Ask me for the recipes.

Monday:

Tender Pot Roast, Salad

Tuesday:

15-Minute Chicken and Rice dinner, Salad

Wednesday:

Cinnamon and Lime Chicken Fajitas, Salad

Thursday:

Avocado-Lime Shrimp Salad, Garlic Bread, Spicy Green Beans

Friday:

Chicken and 3 cheese Potato Casserole, Salad

Saturday:

Avocado and Green chili Soup, Taco Salad

Sunday:

Mexican Haystacks, Salad

Resolution

I have been thinking about goals, as one is wont to do around New Years. I realize that I am not a person inclined to be lazy- jaw dropper I know. I always want to be organized and self-disciplined, I make many starts, but I never get very far. When I was still in school, at the beginning of each semester, I would schedule out my week; alotting time for school, study, housework, exercise, etc. I would stick to the schedule maybe a week. Then something would come up to throw the schedule off and I would never get back on it. Now, this does not mean that I stop trying, I still schedule and make lists and spreadsheets, but so far the results have all been the same. I am hoping that this blog may help me. I will have to do the stuff on my schedule so that I can subsequently report that I have accomplished my daily goals on my blog. We will see how this plan works. As of yet, I have not come up with a schedule.

Things I would like to make a habit:

Daily Book of Mormon reading

Monthly Temple Attendence

Monthly Missionary Meals

Daily Blog posts

Actually finishing sewing projects

Studying the weekly Sunday School and Relief Society lesson

Things I have to schedule around:

Work..., yeah that's pretty much it.

I don't know if that's everything, but I think it's a start.

As to my moving situation. My husband officially resigned from his job today. We will be moving to the north part of South Carolina. He will be starting work soon and move there while I hold down the fort here and finish my job- which is a temporary position anyway. I am actually looking forward to it a little. I hope it will be a growing opportunity for me. I got married at 19, and I never really lived on my own, having to keep a house, and working a 'grown up' job. So with my husband gone this may be the perfect time for me to grow up a little. I won't be alone as there is a couple staying with us, but I will be the one in charge of the house and everything. This could be a real opportunity for me. I look forward to it with trepidation and anticipation.

I am still working with having no kitchen, so tonight I was contemplating what to make. I realized that I had one cooking method I could utilize. My mother-in-law gave me a deep fryer for Christmas. Awesome mother-in-law. I haven't really had a chance to use it since Christmas so, tonight we had fried fish and fried raviolis. I know that it was not the healthiest meal but I haven't gone grocery shopping this week yet so I didn't have any vegetables. Oh well, one night won't kills us.

My husband bought an Droid phone tonight. It's the competitor to iPhone, it uses Google. He is so absorbed in exploring it I don't think any grouting will get done tonight. Oh well, I guess I won't have a washer and dryer for a little longer.

The Beginning

Well, I have decided to start a blog. I don't know that anything I have to say is earth shattering but I think it would be interesting to record everything that's going on. As far as an introduction, I am 21 years old, a recent college graduate, and a housewife. I have been married almost two years and I love it. I have discovered that I like to cook and I have a husband who is willing to try new food along with me. I love to sew and take pictures. I do not like housework however, any of it, the cleaning, the laundry, the..., well you get my point. I do love being a wife and I look forward to being a mother. Here's a picture of my boys.

This week has been a different week. I started a job as a receptionist at a retirement community. It's only part time now but I will be moving to full time soon. Since it was the week between Christmas and New Years, my husband's company shut down and he got the week off. He was not able to relax much though. We recently decided that we will be moving and so we need to sell the house we just bought. It needed some work when we bought it so our only hope of selling it is to get the work done. So this week my husband was laying tile, and when I wasn't working I was helping out. We still have some work to do on the floors and we need to paint. Hopefully it will get done before he has to leave for his new job.

We did not really think too far ahead when we decided to tile the kitchen. We got it all laid last night and I did grab the utensils and some bowls and paper plates. But I forgot something very important. Today after church, we realized that the microwave was still in the kitchen, and the stove was on the porch, so we had no way to heat up food. So I worked a little bit and got onto the counter. I was able to get around the kitchen by walking on the counters. So problem was solved but it was an adventure. Maybe we will barbecue tonight.

I am really excited about the upcoming Ward activity. We are planning a Ward dance. I have missed going to church dances. I used to go to youth dance once a month and then 2 singles' dances a month when I was in the Singles' Ward. But then I got married and I have not been to a church dance since. This is going to be so much fun. My husband will not be there unfortunately because when he starts his new job he will move, but I will have a good time with friends. I am slaving over the playlist, since there will be such diverse ages I am trying to get music for everyone. I am so excited, I love my calling.

Till next time.