Tuesday, August 30, 2011

Cheater's Shepherd's Pie

Good recipe for shepherd's pie.  Cheats by using canned veggies and I even use instant mashed potatoes, but once it has baked for 40 minutes, is so yummy, hardly matters!

1 lb. hamburger
1 m-l onion
1.5 tbsp garlic paste or minced garlic
2 cups chopped carrots
1 can corn, drained
1 can peas, drained
1 can mushrooms, drained
1.5 cups chicken broth
2.5 tbsp ketchup
2 tbsp cornstarch
6 cups mashed potatoes
tarragon
salt and pepper to taste

Preheat oven to 375.  Brown hamburger in pan w/ garlic paste.  When almost brown through, add carrots and onion.  Cook and stir another 5 minutes so that carrots and onion are softened.  Add chicken broth, corn, peas, mushrooms and tarragon.  Reduce heat to medium.  Cook another 5 minutes.  Add ketchup and cornstarch.  Let sit 5 minutes.  Dump into casserole and spread potatoes on top.  Salt and pepper all over.  Bake 40 minutes.

Didn't have tarragon today, so I used rosemary, basil and a bit of oregano.  Still super yummy, and we'll easily get another dinner out of this!

A Day at the Zoo...

Yesterday a bunch of ladies (and our kiddos) decided to spend one of our last summer days at the zoo, before kids get packed off to kindergarten again....


First we saw the monkies....

Oh!  Here's another little one!


Lots of looking over fences!







Aren't the animals supposed to be inside the cages?


Lots of energy to burn on all those hills!


The mums (and Nanny Pam) got a workout, too!






A. liked the wagon!


Along with everyone else!


A picnic lunch.


Best friends... (most of the time!)


Sorry ladies, I caught you munching...






A series of 8... "attempts" at a nice family portrait!









A. starts earning her keep!  Luna reaps the benefits...



Elisa did some heavy lifting for me at the Rhinoceros pen.



And the grand dolphin show at the new "dolphinarium!"




















It was a long day, and we were beat when we got home - but so much fun.  Thanks to all the ladies who joined in!