Saturday Dinner…with Swagger

It is a little known secret that when my husband and I met I couldn’t cook to save my life- I literally ruined french toast on one of our breakfast dates. Lucky for him…and our children, and all future dinner parties…I was eager to learn and spent lots of time reading cookbooks, experimenting in the kitchen, and nabbing every hint and recipe I could from my mom, step-mom and mother-in-law.

My mother-in-law, in particular, is a pro at home cooking, and her amazing, yet usually not super healthy, recipes are my husband’s absolute faves! Over time, I’ve taken to tweaking some of her famous recipes into more healthy versions. Such is the case with Hamburger Pie, which is a staple in our home (in the healthier version at least).

A quick note: The version of Hamburger Pie I’m sharing tonight is the “quick” version (we decided, uncharacteristically, to throw something together tonight), and contains some canned veggies. More often than not, I do fresh green beans and frozen white corn form Costco.

1.5 lbs ground turkey
2 green peppers, chopped
1/2 can tomato paste
1 can diced tomatoes
2 cans french green beans (or sub 2 cups fresh green beans)
1 can corn (or sub 1 cup frozen white corn)
3-4 red potatoes (depending on size), chopped and then mashed
1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese
2 Tbsp shredded parmesan cheese

Preheat oven to 350˚. Brown ground turkey, adding chopped green pepper after almost fully cooked through. Allow pepper to soften. Add 1/2 can tomato paste and 1 can diced tomatoes. Stir until turkey/pepper mix is fully coated in tomatoes and paste.

While turkey is browning, chop red potatoes and bring to a boil. Once soft, drain and mash (I usually add a small amount of fat-free milk (maybe 1/4 cup), a Tbsp butter, and some fresh garlic) into a soft mashed puree.

In a glass 13×9″ baking dish, layer ingredients: turkey/pepper/tomato mixture, followed by green beans and corn, followed by mashed potato mix, and finally cheeses.