Night 1: Shepard's Pie

I hardly see myself keeping up with a blog. I can hardly keep up with things like dusting the picture frames or waxing my eyebrows. But this blog is a food diary of sorts. My family comprises of my husband, 2-year-old son and myself. And while I love to cook and think I'm good at it, not all of my recipes are a big hit with the y chromosomes.

Usher in the blog. I'm hoping to use this as a way to keep track of what we've eaten and what was successful...or not.

Tonight's dinner was Shepard's Pie. As I cooked it, I realized I was whipping up a giant vat of mashed potatoes which is one of my son's least favorite foods. Weird, right? What toddler isn't into mashed potatoes? But it was too late to turn back and a caloric catastrophe to grab a spoon, chow down, and pretend said potatoes never existed. So the pie was on.

The recipe was an amalgam of many different ones I'd peeked at during my kiddo's nap. Here's what I came up with:

4 servings instant mashed potatoes, prepared
1/2 cup sour cream
6 oz shredded cheddar cheese
1 lb ground turkey
2 carrots, diced
1/2 medium onion, diced
2 tablespoons tomato paste
1 bay leaf
1 cup chicken stock
1 can cream style corn
1 cup frozen corn, thawed

Prepare the potatoes as directed. I use Whole Foods brand. Add salt, pepper, the sour cream and half the cheese. Set aside. Meanwhile, cook ground turkey with a little olive oil over medium heat. Remove meat once cooked and set aside. Cook onion, carrot and bay leaf. Add more oil if necessary. Once vegetables are soft, add tomato paste and begin to add some of the chicken stock. Put meat back into the hot pan. Add more chicken stock until mixture is thickened.

Thaw corn in a medium bowl. Add the can of cream style corn to the regular corn and mix.

Put the meat mixture on the bottom of a glass pan. Pour the corn on top of the meat, then carefully spread the potatoes over the corn. I find it's easiest to put globs of potatoes all over the corn, then connect the globs with a spoon. Top with the rest of the cheese. Cook for 15 minutes on 350, then broil on high for 5 minutes until the top gets golden brown.

The verdict: Success.

Not the most gourmet meal, but was surprisingly well-received by the toddler. Apparently it was all that cheese in the potatoes. It made plenty so that tomorrow night will be leftovers.