Quick and Easy Shepherd’s Pie!

Hey friends!!! Hope your week is off to a good start! My kids didn't have school yesterday- which was so nice! What I thought was going to be a pretty low key day- ending up being quite an adventure! I woke up to a sick kiddo- which is never fun :( 

Fortunately, I was able to get him comfy and settled before I headed out to an appointment with my oldest daughter and youngest son. After just a few minutes on the road- we heard a very loud POP. I groaned and was able to safely pull over to check out what had happened. 

The passenger side rear tire ran over a huge screw and air was LOUDLY escaping out of the tire. 

It was fine. We were only a few minutes from home and I figured we could get home on a flat-ish tire. So I started to slowly drive home and the tire went completely flat in a matter of SECONDS. I was NOT going to make it home. Thankfully, I was able to safely pull into a church parking lot. 

I called my friend who lives close by and she was able to pick us up! YAY!

I started to gather everything we needed out of the car and then proceeded to pour my ENTIRE to-go cup of coffee ALL OVER ME. HA!

It was like I was in a comedy skit! 

Truthfully- I was more mad I didn't have any coffee to drink than I was that my clothes were soaked in coffee. 

My friend got us home, I was able to re-schedule my daughters appointment for later in the day and my husband arranged for my car to get towed to Discount Tire. I got my coffee soaked clothes in the wash. It was all fine! But it definitely added a bit of wonkiness to my day. HA!

ANYWAY. It's a new day! 

And I have a super easy "semi-homemade" recipe for shepherd's pie to share with you today. 

I made this for Aaron to have for his lunches at work this week! 

Here's the main ingredients you need + one pound of ground beef (or you could even use ground turkey!).

 Of course- you can make your own homemade mashed potatoes- but using pre-made mashed potatoes is what makes this SO easy :)

First step- brown the ground beef. I seasoned generously with salt, pepper, onion powder and garlic powder.

Once the ground beef has been browned- add your veggies! I added a can of mushrooms because my husband likes them. I used two bags of mixed frozen veggies. 

I seasoned the beef/veggie mixture with more salt, pepper, and garlic powder.

Then I added beef broth to the mixture and let it come to a low boil.

To thicken the beef broth, I put about 1/3 cup of flour in a glass jar and added (approx) 2/3 cup beef broth. I shook up the broth/flour mixture (make sure you put the top on the jar! HA!) and poured that into the beef/veggie/broth mixture! Once it had thickened,  I transferred the mixture to a 9 X 13 baking dish.

My husband loves cheese- so I sprinkled a layer of shredded cheddar on top of the beef/veggie mixture. Then I took the two containers of Bob Evan's mashed potatoes and spread those on top of the beef/veggie mixture!

I put it in a 350 degree for about 25-30 minutes. When the potatoes got a nice golden brown and I could see some of the "gravy" bubbling- that's when I knew it was time to pull it out of the oven!

And that's it! So easy!! This makes A LOT of food- so it's great for a crowd or for a dinner + lots of leftovers. Aaron loves it because it's a one stop meal- protein, carbs and veggies all in one!

I know that a lot of people really like a "real" recipe to follow. And I definitely did not provide you one. HA! If you want an easy GOOD shepherd's pie recipe- I recommend this clicking HERE. 

I have used this recipe before and it's great! The only thing I did differently is use my favorite Bob Evan's mashed potatoes instead of making mashed potatoes. 

I am loving having my meal plan set for the whole month. If you didn't catch my post last week- I am meal planning differently this month. Instead of planning our meals weekly- I planned out our dinners for the whole month! You can check out that post HERE!

Here is what's on the menu for this week:

Monday: chicken + macaroni 'n' cheese + green beans

Tuesday: meatball subs (I am making a double portion of meatballs for a meal later in the week!)

Wednesday: scrambled eggs, bacon and toast/biscuits

Thursday: pasta + meatballs + steamed broccoli

Friday: pizza

Saturday: cheddar potato soup + grilled cheese

Sunday: burgers + fries

I will see you tomorrow for some Valentine's Walmart Finds!

Have the BEST day!