I use a classic meatball recipe to make 2 batches of meatballs-24 meatballs in a batch. One to freeze for another quick, easy to go to meal and the other one to use for soups, appetizers, this recipe and many more go to meals. They freeze well, can be made ahead of time and one multiple prep session can yield many great dishes. This recipe makes 48 small to medium meatballs (I am usually tired of rolling in the end so the meatballs tend to get bigger).  😉 Double up the recipe ingredients for crockpot meatballs or the like and now you have a party!  😀

My Mom was one of the most talented Home Cooks I have ever had the pleasure of knowing. She could take any ingredients and make it into something SPECTACULAR! One of my biggest regrets is not asking her for her recipes, though I surmise that kind of cooking magic was only for her hands and in some fashion with me now trying to recreate her recipes it keeps her alive in my hands, as well as my heart. So here is my hybrid attempt at another version of her Shepherd’s Pie utilizing the slow cooker to do the bulk of the work. I hope you would be proud Mom! ♥

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

Crockpot Spaghetti Sauce

1. In a crockpot or slow cooker (whichever term you prefer) place your ground beef. Add the jar of spaghetti sauce, bay leaves, dried oregano, garlic powder, pepper, onion and 3 whole cloves of garlic.
2. Mix all the ingredients together and set the timer to cook for 4-6 hours. Stir every hour or so if you are home. The garlic will start to soften and just permeate the sauce.

   

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   Garlic Breadcrumb Topping

   1. Melt 1/2 cup butter in a saucepan over low heat. Add the garlic and bring it to a sizzle about 1-2 minutes. Remove from heat, add the breadcrumbs and combine, coating all of the breadcrumbs.

   

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Faux Lasagna Assembly

1. Cook the lasagna noodles according to package directions.
2. Layer the bottom of an oven safe baking dish with enough noodles to cover the bottom.
3. Layer a cup or so of the crockpot spaghetti sauce over the noodles.
4. Add half of the mozzarella cheese and spread to cover the sauce.
5. Add half of the garlic breadcrumb topping, spread out over the mozzarella cheese. Sprinkle this layer with some parmesan cheese.
6. REPEAT the layers and sprinkle with parmesan cheese and a little olive oil over the top to add a golden color when baking.
7. Bake for 25-30 minutes. Remove from the oven and let stand 5 minutes before serving. Enjoy!  😛

   

   

1. In a wide saucepan, on medium heat, add 3 tbsp of the olive oil and the whipped butter. When the butter is melted, add 3 of the minced/chopped garlic cloves and saute for about a minute, watching the garlic so it doesn’t burn. Add the flour and mix it in with the butter and olive oil with a whisk. Add the chicken stock and continue whisking until there are no lumps. Turn the heat up to high to boil and thicken the sauce. Add salt and pepper to taste and continue whisking for about 5 minutes or until your sauce is the consistency or thickness you enjoy.

   

2. Turn the heat back down to medium and add the bell peppers. Cook them for 20 minutes for a firm, yet chewy bite. Add the fresh chopped parsley and parmesan cheese. Add a little more salt and pepper to taste.

   

   

3. In a frypan, on medium heat, add the remaining tbsp of olive oil. When heated add the remaining minced/chopped clove of garlic and saute for about a minute. Add the shrimp and cook them about 2-3 minutes per side until they turn from grayish to a nice pink color. Shrimp cook very fast.

   

4. While the shrimp is cooking, cook the angel hair pasta according to package directions. After it is cooked, turn off the heat and leave it in the water to stay warm.
5. When ready to plate, use a pair of tongs to take out a generous portion of pasta and twist it for presentation in a nice themed bowl. Add your scampi sauce and shrimp on top. Garnish with a little more parmesan if you please and a little fresh parsley. Salt and pepper to taste. Enjoy!!!

   

   

Preheat oven to 425 degrees.

1. Brown your ground beef, chopped onion and minced garlic all together. This method really enhances the flavor of the ground beef. Season with a little salt and pepper. Do not drain the fat. You won’t hear me say this often but fat in this dish truly adds flavor and moisture.

   

2. Add the flour to the beef mixture and combine. Then add the beef stock and bring to a boil for 5-7 minutes to thicken the sauce.

   

   

3. Once the stock has thickened to your desired consistency add in the sweet peas and stir all together. Add some more salt and pepper to season to taste. Layer on the bottom of an oven safe baking dish. Set aside and shred your potatoes.

   

4. Layer the seasoned (with a little salt and pepper) shredded potatoes over the beef mixture, covering every nook and cranny. Pour the melted butter over the top. Sprinkle the parmesan cheese evenly over the top. Bake for 45 minutes. I assure you the meat underneath will not dry out, remember from the step above, fat is flavor and moisture. Remove from the oven and turn your oven to broil on high. Spread the cheddar cheese all over the top and place the dish under the broiler until the cheese melts. WATCH it closely during this step.

   

5. And finally oh finally, serve your family a heaping plate of that Pie and Enjoy!  😀

   

Not My Mum's Shepherd's Pie

Ingredients

• 1 1/2lbs Ground Beef
• 1large Onion
• 3cloves garlic
• 2cups Beef Stock
• 4tbsp All Purpose Flour
• 1bag Frozen Sweet Young Peas
• 4large Idaho Potatoes-Or whatever Potatoes you like
• 1cup Shredded Cheddar Cheese
• 1/2cup Parmesan cheese
• Salt
• Pepper
• 1/2cup Melted Butter

Instructions

1. Brown your ground beef, chopped onion and minced garlic all together. This method really enhances the flavor of the ground beef. Season with a little salt and pepper. Do not drain the fat. You won't hear me say this often but fat in this dish truly adds flavor and moisture.
2. Add the flour to the beef mixture and combine. Then add the beef stock and bring to a boil for 5-7 minutes to thicken the sauce.
3. Once the stock has thickened to your desired consistency add in the sweet peas and stir all together. Add some more salt and pepper to season to taste. Layer on the bottom of an oven safe baking dish. Set aside and shred your potatoes.
4. Layer the seasoned (with a little salt and pepper) shredded potatoes over the beef mixture, covering every nook and cranny. Pour the melted butter over the top. Sprinkle the parmesan cheese evenly over the top. Bake for 45 minutes. I assure you the meat underneath will not dry out, remember from the step above, fat is flavor and moisture. Remove from the oven and turn your oven to broil on high. Spread the cheddar cheese all over the top and place the dish under the broiler until the cheese melts. WATCH it closely during this step.
5. And finally oh finally, serve your family a heaping plate of that Pie and Enjoy!

Recipe Notes

I have to admit the texture of the potatoes was not at all what I was used to and threw me off a bit. But then after the second or third helping I got used to it! However, here is My Mum's Shepherd's Pie, just substitute with the Mashed Potatoes. Two options with one recipe—Win-Win!

1. In a food processor or blender, blend your onion, garlic and one tablespoon of the canola oil until you have a smooth texture.

   

2. Combine your ground beef and onion/garlic mixture. Form into about 3 inch diameter patties about 3/4 inch thick. A little bigger than “slider” size. Take your thumb and put a little imprint in the middle of the patties. When grilling the juices will gravitate to the center of the patty. Sprinkle each side of the patties with a little salt and pepper.

   

   

3. Turn the heat on your grill to medium-high. Use a grill brush and brush the remaining canola oil on the grill. Use a little more if needed. This will help prevent the patties from sticking as the grill will be on a high heat.

   

4. Grill the patties on medium-high heat for 5 minutes on each side with the lid open. Lower the heat to medium and grill for an additional 5 minutes on each side with the grill lid closed. The total grilling time is 20 minutes. This may seem long to frequent grillers but believe me you will have a juicy, well done burger without the “normal” well done texture.

   

5. Turn the heat off and add your cheese. Shut the grill lid and let that cheesy goodness just use the residual grill heat to melt it. Serve on a nice soft bun or sans bun if you are low carbing it, with the condiments of your choosing and most of all Enjoy!  😀

   

1. Bring your stew meat out of the fridge and let it sit for about 5-10 minutes while you prepare your flour/dredging mixture. This will take the chill out of the meat and is better for the browning/searing process. In a plastic bag combine the flour, one tbsp of the pepper, garlic powder and a pinch of salt. Add your stew meat, seal the bag lid and shake it all about. Do the Hokey Pokey if you like, this is a no judgement zone.  Make sure to coat all of the meat. Set the meat aside. In a cast iron pot or any regular pot, add a few tablespoons of olive oil and heat it up on medium heat. Add about half of the meat and brown on all sides. Depending on how many pounds of stew beef you are searing, please do this step in batches to keep the heat of the oil nice and hot and ready for searing. After all of your meat has been seared, remove from the pot and set aside.

   

   

2. Add the remaining two tbsp of olive oil to your pot and add your diced onion. Let the onion cook for 2-3 minutes and then add the garlic. Saute the onion and garlic together for another minute or so, add a little more flour from the dredging mixture, about 2-3 tbsp and combine with the onions and garlic. Add the sherry to deglaze the pan, picking up all of those oniony, garlicy bits off the bottom of the pan. Add your stew beef back into the pot and add the beef stock and stir all the players together. Bring to a boil for about 3-5 minutes to thicken the sauce. Lower the heat to low or just above, cover your pot and let that meat do what it does best cook low and slow for 2 hours. Stir occasionally.

   

   

   

   

3. This step is purely optional! But I thoroughly recommend it! Pour yourself a glass of wine and read a good book.  😀

   

4. Now that the 2 hour mark has arrived. It is time to add the veges. I cut the veges pretty small because I want them to cook a little bit quicker as your family is pretty much probably starving by this time and the smell in your kitchen that has permeated the house is probably driving them crazy. I know every time I went to stir the beef my husband would say “when is dinner going to be done Woman?” To which I politely replied (politely, that’s funny), soon honey, soon.  😛 When the veges have been added to the pot, add a tbsp of the dried parsley, crushing it in your palm first to release the oils. Add more salt and pepper to taste and let them simmer for 30 minutes.

   

   

5. At the 30 minute mark, ladies and gentlemen start your grits. Follow the directions on your grits package but basically boil 4 cups of water. When the water is boiling slowly add your grits and a pinch of salt or two and whisk away. Turn your heat to low and let the grits thicken for about 10-15 minutes, whisking occasionally. When they are to your desired thickness, add the butter and cheese and a little salt and pepper and combine.

   

   

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   When all is said and done it is as always time to plate. Put a little (or a lot) of those cheesy grits to line the bottom of your bowl and add to your heart’s desire the beef tips, veges and gravy, sprinkle with a little dried parsley and Enjoy! Cheers to Family and the lost, hopefully to be found again, coveted tradition we call Sunday Night Dinner.  🙂

   

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