Easy Shepherd's Pie

Cook a pound of ground beef with onions, garlic, green peppers, paprika, salt and pepper. Drain. Stir in a can of cream of celery soup. Pour into greased pie pan with high sides (or casserole dish). Top with prepared (cooked) instant garlic mashed potatoes. Top with cheddar or other favorite cheese (just made it with dill havarti and it was awesome). Cook in oven for about 15 minutes or until cheese is melted.

Can also layer in some veggies, depending on how picky your loved ones are.

Italian Zucchini Crescent Pie

This is great for the summer. I made it all the time when living on the farm because we had more zucchini than we knew what to do with.

4 c thinly sliced zucchini
1 c chopped onion
2 T margarine or butter
2 T dried parsley
1/2 t salt
1/2 t pepper
1/4 t garlic powder
1/4 t basil
1/4 t oregano
2 eggs, beaten
2 c shredded Muenster or mozzarella
1 can crescent dinner rolls
2 t prepared mustard (I never used it)

Heat oven to 375
In large skillet, over medium-high heat, cook zucchini and onions in butter until tender, about 8 minutes. Stir in seasonings. In large bowl, combine eggs and cheese, mix well. Stir in cooked vegetables.Separate crescents into triangles. Place in ungreased pie pan, pointy sides in (like a pizza), pressing bottom and up sides, sealing edges to form a crust. Brush crust with mustard (again, I've never used). Pour egg mixture into crust.Bake for 18-22 minutes or until knife inserted near center comes out clean. Let stand 10 minutes before serving

homemade spaghetti sauce

I know nothing is easier than opening a jar of Ragu, but I feel like this may be a little bit better for you :)

1lb (or so) of any kind of meat you want to use
2 cans- 1 diced tomatoes, 1 tomato sauce
1 small can of tomato paste
onion
garlic
bell pepper (any color you like)
salt
pepper
red pepper flakes (if you want a little heat)
brown sugar
parm. cheese
italian seasonings (oregano, basil, etc)
olive oil

brown meat in pan, drain if necessary, set aside
heat olive oil in a sauce pot and throw in diced veggies (from above) adding garlic last b/c it burns easily.
once veggies are sauteed down, add in 2 cans of tomato products (the paste will come later) - cook over med-low heat. throw in remaining seasonings to taste. i wouldn't suggest more than a tbsp of brown sugar or you'll get too sweet. i would also taste before salting b/c some cans of tomato sauce come pre-salted.
add in tomato paste to thicken to desired consistancy, i usually use about half the can.
cont. to cook over low heat until ready to eat.


-sometimes i leave out the can of tomato sauce and will throw in a fresh tomato, carrots, zucchini, etc and make like a ratatouille type thing to put over chicken.
-for kids you can add carrots to the sauce to get an extra veggie. i have a hand held blender that i can dip right into the pot and it "food processes" everything so you can't even tell there are veggies in there (if you need to hide them for a picky eater)