shepherd's pie

I tried my hand at shepherd's pie last night. I didn't follow a recipe specifically, although I did look at a recipe and take hints from it. My turn to cook after work before Ron got home. It had to be pretty painless to prepare.

First I got the potatoes boiling. While they were cooking, I browned some ground pork, with some garlic. I left out onions because we happened to be low on them, and they are one thing Raine can eat without. I didn't want to wait for veggies to saute, so I opened up a can each of corn, peas and carrots. Since I didn't want to have to store any partial cans, I just dumped them all in, even though it was kind of a lot (I did drain the liquid from each can, though). I added some Worcestershire sauce and a little broth to keep moisture in the mixture in the oven. I did the browning in my iron skillet so I could put it in the oven once the mashed potatoes were on top. Raine helped with the mashing, and the skillet with everything in it went in for about half an hour to brown the mashed potatoes.

Well, let me just say, it was a success. OK, so what in that dish is not to be a success, I know. Still, it was my first one. Ron enjoyed it, and Raine said it was her new, second favorite food.

First favorite? Homemade chicken noodle soup with thick egg noodles.