Have you ever had one of those times when your mind becomes a total blank because you can’t think of what you want to prepare for dinner?  Well, Tuesday was one of those times.

You see, I wanted to watch the live broadcast of Jim Hankins, The Gentleman Crafter (http://www.thegentlemancrafter.com), that night, but I still needed to cook dinner for hubby and myself. So, what to have for dinner? Then I remembered, the night before I had dinner with  a good friend in Sacramento at The Cheesecake Factory. One of their menu items that I love (but didn’t order this time) is Shepherd’s Pie.

Now, I know there are all kinds of versions of this dish out there, but this is the version that my family likes. Oh, and I need to give a shout out to my son, Jerry, who added pork sausage to his meat mixture and I now include that in my recipe.

So, here is the recipe that I use to make Shepherd’s Pie:

YaYa’s Shepard Pie

Preheat oven to 425 degrees.

1 pound ground beef; 1/2 pound pork sausage; 1/2 cup onion, chopped; 1 teaspoon garlic, minced; 1 teaspoon basil; 1 teaspoon oregano; 1/2 teaspoon salt; dash of pepper; 2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce; 1/2 cup zucchini, chopped; 1/2 cup carrots, chopped; 1/2 cup frozen peas; 1/2 cup frozen corn; 1/2 cup mushrooms, sliced; 1 jar (12 oz.) beef gravy; about 2 cups mashed potatoes and 1 cup grated cheddar cheese.

Brown ground beef, sausage, onion and garlic. After meat mixture has browned add basil, oregano, salt and pepper; mix well. Now add Worcestershire sauce, zucchini, carrots, peas, corn & mushrooms; mix well. Stir in beef gravy. Bring to a boil. Then transfer this mixture to an ovenproof baking dish (1-9×13 or 2-7×9).

Next spread mashed potatoes over meat mixture and sprinkle grated cheese over mashed potatoes. Bake for 15 or 20 minutes.

Serve with Cesar salad.

This was the perfect meal to eat while enjoying Jim’s telecast. BTW, be sure to check The Gentleman Crafter’s blog for some very creative mixed media/craft ideas.

Thanks for stopping by and until next time . . . HUGS & KISSES ~ LindaB

What a surprise! . . . I planted some Coleus’s under our old oak tree for their leaf color this spring and I found them blooming. Didn’t know they did this. Learn something new every day!