Recipes

Cooking and eating has to be done every day, even if you have deadlines looming. Have recipes on hand that are both quick and easy will make mealtimes easier and get you back to writing faster!

Shepherd's Pie
Shepherd's pie is one of my favorite quick and easy meals and it's perfect for cooler evenings. It's also the ultimate comfort food for those days when you need a little pick me up.

Ingredients:
1 lb ground beef
1 small can tomato soup
1 can green beans
Instant mashed potatoes or leftover mashed potatoes
Cheese

Cooking:
Brown the ground beef in a skillet and drain excess grease. I like to rinse mine in hot water to really get rid of all the grease, but that is optional.

Pour the ground beef into a casserole dish and add the tomato soup and green beans. Be sure to drain the green beans first!

Cover the whole thing with mashed potatoes, making a layer that is several inches thick. Spread them out nice and even.

Pop it into a 350 degree oven for 30 minutes so that it gets nice and hot all the way through.

Sprinkle cheese all over the top of the potatoes. For extra cheesiness, I often use sliced cheese to cover the area really well. Pop it back in the oven until the cheese is melted.

This is a meal in itself, no need for any side dishes at all, but some garlic bread or bread sticks make a wonderful addition!

Easy Cobbler
Need an easy dessert to whip up on a busy day? Fruit cobbler takes few ingredients and can be prepared and in the oven baking in about 5 minutes.

Ingredients:
Large can of fruit or pie filling
1 cup self rising flour
1 cup sugar
1 cup milk
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Cooking:
Pre-heat your oven to 350 degrees. Pour the fruit or pie filling into a small casserole. Mix the flour, sugar, milk and vanilla together. Spread the mixture over the fruit and use a small spoon to swirl some of the batter through the fruit. Bake for 30 minutes, or until the breading is golden brown. For an extra treat, serve with vanilla ice cream on top!