Shepherd's Pie

Shepherd's Pieadapted from Taste of Home Everyday Light Meals
6 medium potatoes
1lb carrots, cut into 1/4-inch slices
1 1/2lblean ground beef
1 large onion, chopped
1 jar (12oz) fat-free beef gravy
1 tsp salt, divided
1/2 tsp rubbed sage
1/2 tsp dried thyme
1/4 tsp dried rosemary, crushed
1/4 tsp pepper
1/3 cup fat-free milk
1 Tbsp butter
2 Tbsp shredded Parmesan cheese

Directions:  Peel and cube the potatoes; place in a large saucepan and cover with water.  Bring to a boil over medium-high heat; cover and cook for 20 minutes or until tender.  Add 1inch of water to another saucepan; add carrots.  Bring to a boil.  Reduce heat; cover and simmer until crisp-tender, about 7-9 minutes.  Drain.
 In a large nonstick skillet, cook beef and onion over medium heat until meat is no longer pink; drain.  Stir in the carrots, gravy, 1/2 tsp salt, sage, thyme, rosemary and pepper.  Transfer to a shallow 3qut baking dish coated with nonstick cooking spray.
 Drain the potatoes; mash with milk, butter and remaining salt.  Spread over meat mixture.  Sprinkle with Parmesan cheese.  Bake, uncovered, at 375 degrees for 40-45 minutes or until heated through. 

Nutrition Facts:
Cal 390
Fat 13g (6g sat fat)
Choles 53mg
Sodium 859mg
Carb 43g
Fiber 6g
Protein 30g

Diabetic Exchange:  3 lean meat, 2 starch, 2 vegetable, 1/2 fat

Modifications:
-I used ground chicken instead of ground beef.
-I added a can of Italian styled diced tomatoes.
-I used a packaged gravy instead of a jar.
-I did not sprinkle with Parmesan cheese.

Here's what you'll need:

Peel and cube the potatoes.

Slice up the carrots.

Dice up the onion.

Put the carrots in water to boil and soften.

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.

Brown the ground chicken.

Cook the potatoes, drain and add the butter.

Add the onion to the ground chicken.

Once the chicken is cooked through, add the carrots.

I decided to use a can of Italian-style diced tomatoes.

Add the tomatoes and the herbs.

Make the gravy.  If using jarred gravy, skip this step.

Add the gravy to the pot and let simmer for 5-6 minutes.

Pour into a greased baking dish.

Spread the mashed potatoes over the top.

Bake in the oven for 40-45 minutes.

Here's what you'll end up with:

Our Thoughts:
We love shepherd's pie around this house and this one is no different.  The addition of the brown gravy in with the mixture of onions and tomatoes really gave an extra depth.  Scott said it was one of his favorite meals that I have made in a long time and he had 3 helpings! 

This is a perfect comfort food dish!

Hope you enjoy!
April

Texas Ranch-Style Stew

Texas Ranch-Style Stew adapted from Everyday Light Meals
1 cup small shell pasta
1lb lean ground beef
1 medium onion, chopped
1 medium green pepper, chopped
2 garlic cloves, minced
3 cans (5.5oz) reduced-sodium V8 juice
1 can (15oz) ranch-style beans or baked beans, undrained
1/2 cup frozen corn, thawed
1 Tbsp chili powder
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper

Directions:  Cook the pasta according to package directions.  Meanwhile, in a large nonstick skillet, cook the beef, onion, green pepper and garlic over medium heat until meat is no longer pink; drain.  Stir in the remaining ingredients.  Bring to a boil.  Reduce heat; simmer, uncovered, for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally.  Drain the pasta.  Stir into the stew.  6 Servings

Nutrition Facts:
One Serving (1 1/3 cups) equals:
Cal 307
Fat 7g (3g sat fat)
Cholest 37mg
Sodium 886mg
Carb 37g
Fiber 7g
Protein 22g

Diabetic Exchange: 3 lean meat, 2 vegetable, 1 1/2 starch

Modifications:
-I did not use a green pepper.
-I used ground chicken instead of beef. (Nutrition Facts reflect ground beef)
-I did not use picante sauce.

Here's what you will need:

Brown the meat.

Cook the pasta according to the package directions.

Add the onions, garlic, and rest of the ingredients.

Simmer for 8-10 minutes.

 Once the pasta is cooked, drain and add to the other ingredients.

Here's what you'll end up with:

Our Thoughts:
This is another easy recipe from the Taste of Home Everyday Light Meals cookbook that I received from my sister for Christmas.

This recipe was very easy, almost like a pantry meal, and was perfect for a cold winter's night.  I did feel like a little flavor was lacking, even with the addition of the V8, so I think that this recipe definitely needs the addition of the picante sauce.  I continued to add more chili powder and cumin to taste.

Hope you enjoy!

April

Chicken (Turkey) Parmesan Burgers

Chicken Parmesan Burgers from The Epicurious.com
10 1/2-inch-thick slices French bread (4 inches in diameter); 8 slices toasted, 2 slices (crust removed) diced

1/2 cup finely grated Parmesan cheese
4 tablespoons minced fresh basil, divided, plus 12 large basil leaves
3/4 cup purchased refrigerated marinara sauce
12 ounces ground chicken (white meat)
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, divided
1 tablespoon grated onion
1/4 teaspoon salt
4 ounces whole-milk mozzarella cheese, thinly sliced
4 large radicchio leaves

Directions:  Blend diced bread and Parmesan in processor to fine crumbs. Transfer to pie dish; mix in 2 tablespoons minced basil.

Mix marinara and 2 tablespoons basil in small saucepan. Transfer 1 1/2 tablespoons sauce to large bowl. Add chicken, 1/2 tablespoon oil, onion, and 1/4 teaspoon salt. Sprinkle with pepper; blend. Shape into four 1/2-inch-thick patties; coat with crumbs. Heat sauce over low heat.

Heat 1 1/2 tablespoons oil in large nonstick skillet over medium heat. Cook patties until bottoms are crusty, 4 minutes. Turn patties over; top with cheese. Cook 3 minutes. Cover; cook until cooked through and cheese is melted, about 1 minute.

Assemble burgers with bread, radicchio, basil leaves, and warm marinara.

Modifications:
-I used ground turkey instead of chicken.
-I uesd Italian bread crumbs instead of making my own.
-I used shredded mozzarella cheese since that is what I had on hand.
-I used 9 whole grain Italian bread.

Here's what I started with:

Here's how I did it:

#1 I poured the marinara sauce into a sauce pan.  I minced some fresh basil and then put 2 Tbsps of the basil in with the marinara sauce.

#2 Spooned out about 1 1/2 Tbsps of the mixture into a separate bowl.

#3 I grated about 1 Tbsps of onion into the bowl. 

#4 Next came the ground turkey.

#5 I formed the mixture into 3 patties.  I used 1lb of ground turkey.

#6 I rolled the patties in some Italian bread crumbs.

#7 They went into a skillet with some olive oil.  They cooked for about 4 minutes on that side, until they started to crust up.  Then I flipped them over and added some shredded mozzarella cheese.

#8 I covered the burgers so the cheese would melt and let them cook for another 4 minutes or so. 

#9 While the burgers were finishing up, I cut up some 9 grain Italian bread and threw the slices into the oven to toast up.

The Finished Product:

Review:

"Those were awesome!"  Those were the first words that came out of Scott's mouth when we were finished with dinner.  I guess I could just stop right there.  LOL

Even though these burgers were really, really good they were also really hard to work with.  They were really "loose" and wanted to fall apart.  After I got the initial crust on them, I realized that I had probably made them too thick and the middle was not cooking.  I committed the ultimate burger cardinal sin and I split them open and turned the insides facing down so they could actually cook (they had been on for about 13 minutes at this point).  Once they were finished, I just put 2 sides on the bread and covered it with the marinara sauce and basil.  Scott couldn't tell the difference.

As I've stated before, I'm not a basil fan but I am determined to adapt!

I served these burgers with yummy oven-roasted sweet potatoes--cube up some sweet potatoes, add about 1/4 cup of olive oil to coat, liberal salt/pepper and throw into a 475 degree oven for 30 minutes.  Stir at about 15 minute mark.

Hope you enjoy!

April

*****(5 Stars)--This dish was fantastic!

Chicken Parmesan Burgers

Chicken Parmesan Burgers from Cooking Light
10 1/2 inch sliced  French bread
1/2 cup finely grated Parmesan cheese
4T minced fresh basil, plus 12 large basil leaves
3/4 cup marinar sauce
12 oz ground chicken
2T extra virgin olive oil
1 T grated onion
1/4 t salt
4 slices mozzarella cheese

Directions:  Blend diced bread and parmesan cheese in food processor to fine crumbs. Place in pie plate and add 2 T basil.

Mix marinara and 2 T basil in small saucepan. Transfer 1 1/2 T sauce in a large bowl. Add chicken, 1/2 T oil, onion, and 1/4 t salt. Sprinkle with pepper; blend. Shape into 4 patties; coat with crumbs. Heat sauce over low heat.

Heat 1 1/2 T oil in large skillet over medium heat. Cook patties till bottoms are crusty, about 4 minutes. Turn patties over; add slice of mozzarella to each. Cook 3 minutes. Cover and cook 1 more minute or until cheese melts and patties are done.

Serve with basil and marinara sauce on toasted French bread.

Modifications:
-I was a little confused with this recipe.  The ingredients didn't say anything about diced bread and I really didn't want to pull out a food processor so I just used Italian bread crumbs to use as a binding.


Here's what I started with:

Here's how I did it:

#1 I grated some onion into 1lb of ground chicken.

#2 I chopped up some fresh basil.   

#3 I poured some bread crumbs into the mixture as a binder.

#4 I poured some marinara sauce in a pan and let it heat up a bit.

#5 I added the Parmesan cheese and a little bit of the sauce to the chicken and then mixed it up.

#6 I scored the chicken into 4 parts and formed them into patties.

#7 I sliced up some French bread and threw it into a 375 degree oven to toast.

#8 I cooked the burgers in a wrought iron skillet with some olive oil.

#9 Once they were cooked, I put some mozzarella cheese on them to melt.

#10 Once the cheese melted, I put the burgers on the French bread with some of the marinara sauce and a couple of basil leaves.

The Finished Product:

Review:

These burgers were great.  I, personally, didn't really care for the basil leaves.  I'm not crazy about their flavor.  I also ended up taking the burger off of the bun (watching the carbs) and it was still good but not nearly as good as the one bite I took with the bread.

If you have ever worked with ground chicken in a burger you know that it is kind of difficult.  They are so soft and fall apart easily.  I think I should have added just a bit more Parmesan cheese or bread crumbs.

Scott loved these sandwiches and said that they reminded him of a meatball sandwich.

Hope you enjoy!
April