I was debating on whether I should post this up because ROSY should be blogging about the foodmaking, not me ! ….purely because I am just a terrible cook :( ..but oh well.
Case in point: I made a diabetic cake out of unsweetened apple sauce for my dad’s birthday, but I didn’t bake for long enough ..so it was a little …undercooked on the inside (to say the least) ..and just a few weeks ago, I burnt my 2 minute noodles ! :(
But I was feeling a little creative about 2 weeks ago (looking through my mum’s Woman’s Day magazine) and decided to make Shepherd’s pie for dinner ! …with a slight variation of the original recipe
(yes i know Shepherd’s pie doesn’t have tomatoes ..but according to Woman’s Day, it doesn’t have pastry either)
So here’s what I did ..with a few dodgy improvised ingredients & perhaps slightly unorthodox cooking methods that shall be censored for a rainy day..
Shepherd’s Pie
Ingredients
– 500g of frozen vegetables, defrosted (or you can use real vegetables if you’re not feeling lazy)
– 500g of beef, sliced
– 2 tomatoes, thinly sliced
– a few leaves of basil
– 1 tbs worcestershire sauce
– 1 teaspoon of salt
– lashings of pepper
– 1 slice of Bega cheese, sliced
– 1 tbs chicken stock
– olive oil (for oiling the saucepan)
– 1 onion, sliced
– 1 tbs flour
Instructions
1. Put saucepan on to heat, add olive oil and onions and fry for 2 minutes
2. Add frozen vegetables and stir until tender (for approx. 5 minutes)
3. Add flour and chicken stock to beef, mix well together and then add to saucepan
4. Add Worcestershire sauce, salt and pepper to taste. Cook for another 5 minutes, or until beef is tender, and then leave to sit in an oven-proof pan. Stir in basil ….
…and add sliced tomatoes and sliced cheese on top !
I had to cut up the slices of Bega tasty cheese (which is really not my favourite cheese in the world …haha) ..but the photo of me having done that looks so unappetising I shall refrain from putting it up
..but I did get a little overexcited with the tomatoes & went a teeny bit overboard
Ingredients [for mashed potatoes]
– 10 potatoes, peeled and chopped (for easy mashing)
– 1 leek, sliced
– 200ml of milk
– 2 tablespoons of butter
– 1 slice of Bega cheese, sliced
Further Instructions [for mashed potatoes]
5. Boil potatoes in hot water for approximately 10 minutes
6. Drain of water and mash, adding milk and butter for creamier texture
7. Bring back to boil, adding leek and cheese (if you wish it)
8. Spoon mashed potatoes over the beef mixture (and in my case, the tomato layer as well), then add MORE tomatoes for decoration
Soggy mashed potatoes ..haha and tomatoes!
9. Put oven-proof pan into oven preheated to 190 degrees, and then bake for 15 – 20 minutes.
I must say the final effort tasted pretty goood :D (’twas the general consensus of the guests as well :D) . The meat was actually really nice – wasn’t too salty, or tangy, or overcooked, or raw, or whateverr ..(can you believe it ?! Something I cooked ….nice!!). Although my dad made the mashed potatoes for me, and he accidentally boiled them in too much water so they were waaay too sogggy ..and I didn’t get the crispy top I wanted ! :(
..Also, i know i haven’t been able to shut up about KFC lately, BUT if anyone missed out on the KFC Cayan Grill burger, you can still buy the burger/twister combo for $5.95 ! VOUCHERS HERE ! damnnn KFC is so tasty =9
Have a good weekend guys ! :)
nuts about my nuts 