Sunny Anderson's Shepherd Pie

I saw this on Food TV and tried it and it came out really great.

Ingredients

nocoupons

• 2 pounds russet potatoes, washed, peeled and cut into chunks
• 1 clove garlic, smashed
• Salt
• 6 tablespoons butter
• 1/2 cup heavy cream
• Freshly ground black pepper
• 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
• 1 1/2 pounds ground beef (85 percent lean)
• 2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce
• 1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
• 2 tablespoons tomato paste
• 1/2 cup low-sodium beef stock
• 1/2 large onion, finely chopped
• 1 red bell pepper, julienned
• 2 zucchini, julienned
• 2 carrots, peeled and grated
• 1 teaspoon Hungarian hot paprika, plus more for garnish
• 4 ounces Havarti cheese, grated
• Mushroom Onion Gravy, recipe follows

Directions

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.

In a medium saucepan, cover potatoes and crushed garlic with enough water to cover by 1-inch. Add some salt and bring to a boil over high heat, then reduce to medium-high and cook until fork tender, about 15 minutes. Drain potatoes, return to pot, and mash together with 3 tablespoons of the butter and the heavy cream. Season with salt and pepper, to taste, and set aside.

In a large pan on medium-high heat, combine 1 tablespoon butter and 1 tablespoon oil. When butter has melted, add beef, Worcestershire sauce, cayenne pepper and salt and pepper, to taste, and cook until meat is brown. Stir in tomato paste and saute for a few minutes. Add stockzucchini, carrots and paprika. Cook until tender, about 10 minutes. Remove from heat. and bring to a simmer. Season and remove mixture to a bowl. In the same pan, add remaining butter and oil and saute onions until almost tender, then add red bell pepper,

To assemble, in a 9 by 12-inch baking dish layer half of beef, pressing down to pack in, then sprinkle the cheese on evenly. Pour the remaining half of the beef over the cheese and press down. Next, add the sauteed vegetables and top with the mashed potatoes, spreading out with a spatula or the back of a spoon to even out and to form decorative peaks and valleys. Sprinkle top with paprika and bake for 30 minutes or until edges on potatoes turn golden brown. Serve with Mushroom Onion Gravy.

Mushroom Onion Gravy:

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• 1/2 large onion, chopped
• 8 ounces white button mushrooms, sliced
• 3 tablespoons oil
• 3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
• 1 cup red wine
• 2 cups beef broth
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper

In a medium saucepan over medium heat, saute onions and mushrooms in oil until tender and mushrooms release their moisture, about 5 minutes. Add flour and stir to evenly coat. Slowly whisk in wine and then the broth. Simmer until thickened and season with salt and pepper, to taste.

Very Strange Salad!

I served this a while back. My Mom said it was a very strange salad-but she had 2 helpings! I have always loved the tastes of watermelon with feta cheese and when I saw this salad on " THE ART OF ARMENIAN & MIDDLE EASTERN COOKING " In was very happy to try it-and I liked it- and so did everyone at dinner!

WATERMELON, FETA & OLIVE SALAD

2 tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil

Juice of 2 limes
Coarse sea salt and freshly
ground black pepper (OPTIONAL)

1⁄4 small red onion, thinly sliced *

1 2-lb. piece seedless watermelon,
rind removed, cut into 1" cubes
4 oz. feta cheese, crumbled (about 1⁄4 cup)

In a large bowl, whisk together the first 5 ingredients. Add the onions then toss gently with the watermelon and cheese.

*I slice the onions then put them in a baggie with some sea salt. Then squeeze a few times to soften the flavor then strain the juice and add to salad.

**You can add chopped jalapenos or sliced black olives to the salad.

The GREATEST Mac & Cheese!

I know everyone has the BEST recipe for Mac & Cheese but I really have come up with the best! I made this last night for our neighbor's Halloween party and it was gone in 20 minutes!

1 16 oz box of penne (or cavatappi)
8 slices bacon
1 large shallot, finely chopped
2 tbs butter
1/4 c flour
2 1/2 c milk
1 can cream of celery (or mushroom) soup--(mix into milk)
3 c shredded cheese (I like a mix of sharp cheeses like Gruyere and cheddar. You can also use prepared shredded cheese mixes)
2 tbs prepared basil pesto
1 1/2 c grape tomatoes-halved*
1/3 c fine breadcrumbs

• Pre heat oven to 400 degrees
• Coat baking pan (lasagna size) with cooking spray
• Cook pasta according to directions, drain and return to pot
• Meanwhile, cook bacon in a large skillet, until crispy, drain on towels
• In same skillet, melt butter, then sauté shallots 1-2 minutes.
• Add flour and whisk continuously until smooth, then slowly add milk whisking constantly while cooking 3-5 minutes until bubbly. Add cheese and whisk until smooth.
• Stir cheese into pasta. Crumble 6 slices of bacon and add to pasta with the tomatoes and pesto
• Pour into baking dish and crumble remaining bacon on top. Sprinkle with bread crumbs and bake until golden no more than 15 minutes.

*If you don't have grape tomatoes on hand, use a small can of diced tomatoes.
You can add 2 cups of cut up left over chicken or ham for a one dish dinner. You can subsitute 1 chopped red bell pepper instead of the tomatoes. (Saute with the onion before adding to pasta)