Shepherds pie and garlic dip

The other day I was reading a book and the grandma made Shepherds Pie. I love Shepherds pie soooooo much! So of course the book made me want to eat some (this has happened before with spaghetti. lol) So, I looked up a recipe, got the gist of it, Mashed potatoes over veggies and ground meet in a gravy. So I threw some goat and sheep's cheese and lots of cream and garlic in the mashed potatoes, and added some yummy spices to the gravy, and wallah!

Shepperds Pie:

Prep time: 10 min Cook time: 20 min

• 2 ibs of potatoes, pealed and cubed,
• 1/4 cup of sour cream
• 1/2 cup of cream
• 1 egg yolk
• 1/2 cup of cream
• 1/4 cup of manchego cheese
• 1/4 cup of creamy goat cheese or cream cheese
• 2 cloves of garlic minced
• salt and pepper

Boil the potatoes, drain and mash. mix all the rest of the ingredients except the cheese and garlic with the potatoes. Stir in the cheese and garlic. You can put some of the manchego on top of the potatoes once the whole pie is put together.

The filling:

• 2 tbsp of butter
• 1 pound of  ground meat, beef, lamb, mutton, turkey whichever you prefer 
• 1 onion diced
• 1/4 cup of flour or cornstarch
• 2 cups of beef or chicken broth
• 2 tbsp of tomato paste
• 1 tbsp of Worcestershire sauce
• 1 tbsp of rosemary 
• 1 tbsp dried parsley
• 2 cups of frozen veggies (carrots, peas, green beans, and corn)
• a couple dashes of paprika and salt and pepper to taste

Cook the meat and onions in the butter in a cast iron skillet. Add in the flour or cornstarch and stir it in, then add in the broth. You may need to add in more flour. Add in everything else and let cook on medium till the gravy is thickened. Put the mashed potatoes on top, and if you want cheese then that too. Sprinkle with some paprika and parsley. Broil until the top gets golden and a bit crispy. You can always use a casserole dish if you would like.

 This dip is supper easy to make. mix 1/2 cup of Whole Fat yogurt and creamy goat cheese (can use cream cheese if you don't like goat cheese) with 1/4 to cup of fresh chopped parsley, and 2 to 4 garlic cloves minced. Add in 1/4 cup of olive oil and pepper to taste. If you want a Mexican or Indian flavor use cilantro instead of parsley and put in a squeeze of lime. (my cousin used cilantro and lemon juice and it was so yummy!) This dip is supper good for you. The garlic and partly (parsley has vitamin c) help to fite colds and the olive oil is just plane all around awesome for you.

And now... Sputnik!

Balsamic Orange Chicken

This chicken is so yummy! I fried it in coconut oil which gave it such an amazing flavor, without the sauce! Then when I added the sauce, oh my goodness! Incredible! I used balsamic vinegar instead of rice wine vinegar, and I loved the sweetness and the extra complexity that I got from it. I also highly suggest that you use it in sweet and sour sauce (another supper easy recipe). For this recipe you can use boneless and skinless chicken, or take of the meat and use the scraps to make a yummy broth for a soup later. 

Balsamic Orange Chicken

Serves 4 (or 2 hungry teens). 

Prep time, 10-15min

Cook time 10 min in total 

The Chicken:

• 2 Ibs of chicken cut into cubes. (if you use bone in, get at least .5ibs more)
• 2 cups of flour (you may need more, Pamela's baking mix works good for gluten free)
• 1 to 2 eggs
• a bit of salt and pepper about 1/4 tsp
• Oil for frying. I used coconut in my walk, but peanut would work, or if you want a nutty flavor use sesame. 

Put chicken in egg, then flour and fry in a wok or pan with high sides in batches at 375 until golden and crispy.

For the sauce:

• 1 cup of water
• 1 orange juiced and zested 
• 1 lemon, juiced
• 1/3 cup of balsamic vinegar 
• 3 Tbsp of soy sauce (for gluten free use Tamari)
• 1 Tbsp of molasses 
• 1/3 cup of honey (use 1 cup of brown sugar in place of honey and molasses if desired.)
• 1 Tbsp of ginger root minced. (I like a strong ginger flavor so use less if desired)
• 1-3 cloves of garlic, depending on how strong you like it.
• Asian hot sauce, however much you like.
• 1/4 cup of corn starch mixed with 1/4 cup of cold water

Mix everything together but the cornstarch mixture and bring to a boil. Add in the cornstarch mixture slowly, until it thickens nicely. Use on the side, or poor over chicken. You can also get fancy and toss the chicken with the sauce together in a bowl until everything is evenly coated. Serve with a salad  rice, millet, or quinoa, or just eat! Lastly, enjoy your meal. :)