When I was growing up, we had “family night” every Sunday at 5:30pm. It was a joyous weekly event of playing with my cousins, chatting with the adults and having the occasional family brawl over topics on ‘60 Minutes’. Regardless, it was a time that we would all be together without fail sharing food and fun. Every woman in the family (of course none of the men in the McCord clan cooked unless it was something that could be burned on a barbeque grill) had their own special recipes and for one of my aunts, it was shepherd’s pie.
I’ll be honest, I remember the first few times I walked up to the buffet line I would scrape off as much of the mashed potatoes and cheese for myself as possible, leaving the veggies and meat at the bottom for someone else to eat. I wasn’t a picky kid, but I knew what I loved.
Lately, some of my girlfriends have been starting a new tradition of
Wednesday night dinner with some of the neighborhood families. Last week I decided to make shepherd’s pie to see if any of the veggies and meat would make it to the kids’ plates. I was kind of shocked. Of course Kenya ate almost every bite (I’m either blessed or cursed that this child will eat anything), but the other kids seemed to enjoy it too, peas and all.
Shepherd’s pie is such a great family dish because you can puree it up for a baby and the toddlers, big kids and adults can enjoy it in its solid form.
Packed with protein, veggies and carbohydrates, it really is an all-in -one meal. My version of shepherd’s pie is on the healthy side. I love mashed potatoes as much as the next person, but a stick of butter and heavy cream seems a little too rich for my blood for a stay-at -home meal, so I’ve played with it to keep the flavor, but reduce a lot of the fat. So, now everyone in the family can enjoy weelicious recipes, be healthy and leave the table with full bellies!

Shepherd’s Pie (Makes 6-8 Servings)

4 Potatoes, russet or Idaho, peeled and cut into quarters
1/3 Cup Milk
4 Tbsp Butter, divided
1 Lb Ground Meat
1 Tbsp Olive Oil
1 Carrot, diced
1 Small Onion, diced
1 Celery Stalk, diced
2 Tbsp Flour
1 Cup Beef Stock (or 1 bouillon cube dissolved in 1 cup of warm water)
2 Tbsp Worcestershire Sauce
1/2 Cup Peas, defrosted if frozen
1/2 Cup Cheddar Cheese, shredded
Salt and Pepper to taste

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Salt the water if you choose, about 1 tbsp. Add the potatoes and reduce heat to a simmer.
3. Cook for 12 minutes or until fork tender.
4. Drain potatoes and mash in a ricer or by hand.
5. Add the milk and 2 tablespoons of the butter and mash until smooth.
6. Heat a saute pan over medium heat. Brown the ground meat for 5-6 minutes and drain off the oil when finished. Place the meat aside.
7. Heat the olive oil in the same saute pan over medium heat and cook the onion, celery and carrot until soft and tender — about 4 minutes. Place the vegetable mixture with the meat.
8. In the same saute pan, melt 2 tablespoons of the butter. Add the flour, stirring constantly making a roux.
9. When the roux is a golden colored paste, add the beef stock and worcestershire sauce, stir with a whisk to thoroughly combine.
10. Add the meat and vegetable mixture to the sauce and combine.
11. In several individual ramekins or a large casserole dish, place the meat and vegetable mixture.
12. Sprinkle the peas on top.
13. Spread the mashed potatoes on top of the peas.
14. Sprinkle the mashed potatoes with cheese.
15. Bake 30 minutes for the large casserole or 15 minutes for individual ramekins.
16. Let cool for kids. Serve warm for adults.

When you’re raising kids it’s funny how so many of your own personal tastes and culinary passions automatically get passed on to your little one(s. What you eat during your pregnancy will likely be what they crave. As a family we don’t eat a lot of red meat, so neither does Kenya.
I do love myself a hamburger, but most of the time I prefer to make a good turkey burger for several reasons: One, turkey meat is a lot less expensive then the high quality grass-fed beef that I would want to buy (most beef produced in this is corn-fed and since cattle do not naturally eat corn, producers must pump them full of antibiotics so the corn does not make them sick). I bought 1.5 pounds of 7% fat ground-turkey for $3.82 (Which makes the meat in this recipe come out to be a little over $1 (since I only needed less then a 1/3 of the package). While I was shopping I also checked out organic ground meat and it was over $13 for the same amount!
Turkey is packed with nutrients: B vitamins, iron and more zinc then chicken. It’s also known as a mood booster which we know every little one can use now and then.
Most of all, I love the flavor of turkey. It’s mild and when served with a piece of cheddar cheese melted between two slices of bread, it’s a perfect protein-packed meal.

Turk-wee Burgers (Make 12 Mini Burgers)

1/2 Lb 7% Fat Ground Turkey Meat
1 Tbsp Shallot, minced (you could also use onion)
1 Tsp Worcestershire Sauce
1 Tsp Oil
12 1 Inch Slice Cheddar Cheese
3 Slices Whole Wheat Bread

1. Place the turkey, shallot and Worcestershire sauce in a bowl and mix with your hands until throughly combined.
2. Preheat a large skillet over medium heat. Coat the pan with the oil.
3. Cook the burgers for 3 minutes and flip to the other side.
4. Cook the burgers an additional 2 minutes.
5. Place a slice of cheese on each burger and cover the pan for 1 minute.
6. Using a 1 inch circular cookie cutter, cut out 4 circular “buns” out of each slice of bread (I used the cap to a plastic medicine bottle-improvise!)
7. Preheat a broiler and toast until golden.
8. Serve the burgers in the “buns”.

*Holding the buns can be a tough for many toddlers. You can also just
serve the burgers without the “buns” and cut the burgers into bite size pieces.