Proper English Cottage Pie

So, I know I once posted a recipe and called it "British," which I suppose it is since it is a recipe from a BRITISH can. However, I would never call that a "proper" British pie (though I did like it). THIS recipe however actually TASTED British to me and it's good! I even got both of my little boys to eat it. My 15 month old ate it without a problem, but it took a lot more coaxing for my 3 year old. But he did eventually eat it ALL up! As an aside, when I lived in America, I often heard dishes like this called "shepherds pie." Here in the UK, I've learned that a shepherds pie has minced lamb. If you use minced (ground) beef, it's cottage pie. Just a little random fact for you! Enjoy!

Original recipe, here.

 Ingredients:

• 1 pound lean ground beef
• 1 onion, diced
• 3 carrots, diced
• 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
• 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon (the reviews said the original 1/2 a tsp was a bit much, so I did a little less and liked the flavour)
• 1 tablespoon Italian seasoning 
• 2 tsp dried parsley
• 1 1/2 cups beef broth (I did closer to 2 cups based on the size of my bouillon cube over here, since you let the water boil off, it doesn't seem to matter too much)
• 1 tablespoon tomato paste (I used ketchup because I didn't have tomato paste)
• salt and pepper to taste
• 4 potatoes, peeled and diced
• 1/4 cup butter, softened
• 3/4 cup milk (you may want to try a little less depending on the consistency you want)
• salt and pepper to taste
• 1/4 pound shredded Cheddar cheese 

Directions: 

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C or gas mark 6). 
2. To Make Meat Filling: Place a large skillet over medium heat. Crumble in ground beef and sauté 1 minute. Add onion and carrot, then continue to sauté until meat is no longer pink and onion begins to brown, about 5 minutes. Mix in flour, cinnamon, mixed herbs, and parsley. 
3. In a small bowl, combine beef broth and tomato paste. Mix together, then add to beef mixture. Add salt and pepper to taste. Lower heat and simmer mixture for 15 minutes, stirring occasionally, until almost all of liquid has been absorbed. Spoon mixture into a 9 inch pie plate or similar sized pyrex.
4. To Make Potato Topping: Place diced potatoes in a medium saucepan. Cover with water and place over high heat. Allow to come to a boil. Boil for 15 minutes, or until potatoes are tender. Drain.
   Mash potatoes until smooth, then add butter or margarine, followed by milk. Whip until fluffy. Add salt and pepper to taste. Spread potatoes over beef filling. Sprinkle with grated Cheddar cheese.
5. Bake in preheated oven for 25 minutes, until top is browned and cheese is bubbly.  

Chicken Continental

Another recipe without a picture, but it's still a keeper! Tonight I was feeling way too tired to cook and I needed something fast. Some people have elaborate Sunday meals, but Sunday's tend to wipe me out and since I do a lot of intense cooking during the week, Sunday tends to be a "lazier" day. Well, tonight I was looking for something quick to cook based on the ingredients I had on hand in my bare cupboards and found this. Jeff pointed out that it tastes A LOT like rice-a-roni and I'd have to agree with him, BUT it's made from scratch so it's a lot healthier. (Really, I don't cook from a box...ever, unless you count brownies). Plus, it's easy and my boys LOVED it, which is a big plus! I modified the recipe slightly based on other reviews, but it was great! I just served it with some cooked carrots and fruit (I use fruit to bribe my 3 year old to eat, though he didn't need it for this meal!).

Original recipe, here.

Ingredients:

• 4 skinless, boneless chicken breast halves (I cubed them first)
• 2 Tb butter
• 1 (10.75 oz) can condensed cream of chicken soup
• 2 1/2 cups water
• 2 tsp dried parsley
• 2 cloves minced garlic
• 1 stalk of celery, diced
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1 pinch ground break pepper
• 1 1/2 cups rice

Directions:

1. In a large skillet, brown the chicken in the butter. Stir in the soup, 1 1/2 cups of water, parsley, garlic, celery, salt, and pepper. Cover and cook for 20 minutes.
2. Add remaining 1 cup of water and stir in uncooked rice.  Simmer (covered) for an additional 10 minutes, or until liquid has been absorbed.

Mmmm...I love quick, easy meals that my boys will eat! I make really involved meals way TOO often. Like the lasagna the other day that took THREE intensive hours to make and then my toddler refused to eat!