Dinner Tonight

Tonight I made a casserole that was tasty and easy. It does take 2 hours to cook in the oven, but it's great for when you have time earlier in the day to prepare your supper but are going to be busy with stuff just before you want to eat.

I prepared this, put it in the oven and then my girlfriend came over to borrow a tomcat to use as stud. We had a nice visit, a cup of coffee, all while my supper was cooking away in the oven.

I adjusted the recipe a bit, can't help myself! But after eating it, I have adjusted it again before posting it here. It's similar to Shepherd's Pie but you slice the potatoes instead of using mashed. Since I don't really like mashed potatoes, this recipe appealed to me.

Three of us ate and my husband, who never says if it's good or not, had two helpings. My guess is, he liked it.

Here's the recipe, with all adjustments:

Meat and Potato Casserole

2 tablespoons of butter
2 tablespoons of flour
1 large clove of garlic, finely chopped
1 1/2 cups of chopped celery
2 1/2 cups whole milk
2 medium onions, chopped
2 pounds of lean ground beef
salt and pepper to taste
1 1/2 - 2 pounds of potatoes, peeled and thinly sliced
2 cups of frozen corn or canned corn, drained
2 cups of your favorite cheese - I used cheddar
2 cups of fresh, toasted bread crumbs

Preheat oven to 325F

In a medium saucepan, melt butter, add garlic and cook until soft over medium heat. Add flour, stirring constantly until smooth. (This butter and flour mixture is called a rue, it will thicken your sauce) Slowly add milk, stirring constantly, bring to a boil, stir until slightly thicken, remove from heat and set aside.

In a skillet, over medium-high heat, brown ground beef with onion. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Drain any fat off meat, stir in celery.

Peel and slice potatoes, no thicker than a 1/4 inch. I use the food processor, so the slices are pretty thin.

In a 5 quart casserole place half the meat. Cover meat with all the potatoes. Cover the potatoes with the corn. Pour white sauce over the corn. Place the other half of the meat mixture over top the corn. Sprinkle shredded cheese on top, then breadcrumbs.

Bake uncovered for about two hours.

Serves 4 - 6 people. Add a green salad on the side.