Quick Dinner Ideas, #4
I loved this 30 years ago and I love it even more, now! Somehow it’s always the simplest of recipes that give you the best and most incredible results. I have tried so many times to make a fancy version of this – none of them came even close to the one grandpa used to make.
Remember, you can always adjust the amount of red pepper flakes to your taste!
Sometimes I leave them out completely, especially if I’m making this for a family gathering and I know there will be lots of little kids at the dinner table. But when I’m making this for my family, I do like to add red pepper flakes and my kids actually really like it that way!
Ingredients
3 medium white potatoes (pared, thinly sliced)
1 lb lean ground beef or turkey
1⁄2 cup onion, chopped
1⁄4 cup celery, chopped
1 tsp garlic, minced
1 tsp celery leaves
1⁄2 tsp salt
1⁄4 tsp pepper
1⁄2 tsp red pepper flakes (spicy optional)
Cheese sauce:
2 Tbsp Land O’ Lakes butter
2 Tbsp Gold Medal all-purpose flour
3⁄4 cup McArthur milk (or cream)
1⁄2 cup grated cheddar cheese
1⁄2 tsp nutmeg
1⁄4 tsp McCormick chili powder (optional)
1 pinch salt
1 pinch pepper
Topping:
1 pinch paprika or black pepper
grated cheddar cheese
Instructions:
Grease a baking dish or spray with cooking spray.
Preheat oven to 375 F.
Brown ground beef in a large skillet. Drain, if necessary.
Add chopped onions and celery and cook until soft, adding rest of spice ingredients through pepper flakes. Mix until well combined. Put in a bowl and set to the side.
In the same skillet, melt butter, add the flour and stir for one minute over medium-high heat.
Gradually add milk and cook till bubbly and thickened.
Add cheese, nutmeg, salt, pepper, and chili powder continue to stir until melted.
Spread 1/4 cup of the ground beef mixture on bottom of a baking dish. Add a layer of sliced potatoes. (TIP: Use a mandolin slicer to slice the potatoes quickly!) Alternate ground beef mixture, then potatoes until you’ve added all of them.
Pour cheese sauce over ground beef and potato mixture.
Top with a pinch of paprika or ground pepper and grated cheese.
Bake for 1 hour, or until potatoes and beef are bubbly and done.
USE THE RED NEXT PAGE LINK BELOW FOR #3 OF THE 7 QUICK DINNER IDEAS
Quick Tip: Omit the red pepper flakes and chili powder if you don’t like spicy flavors.
