A Man's Pie

Welcome to the Family Kitchen!

Almost all of my recipes, and what I cook even in the kitchen today, with or without kids around, seem to have memories and stories attached. Those memories give us the true flavor of life.

I love the kitchen, as long as I don't have to clean. Since my butler quit, and the maid was fired, it's up to me. HA! You can relate? So, I've developed really fast cleaning tips that are designed to get you out of the kitchen, FAST. When I get through cooking, the last thing I want to do is spend an hour cleaning up, so take a look at these tips before you leave and maybe you'll find one or two that will work for you.

While foster parenting, I ran into many a picky eater, as I've mentioned in many other "chapters." I don't say "foster kids" to point them out in a negative way, but my own 3 sons would eat nuts and bolts, and all the vegetables you could prepare. I was always challenged with helping foster kids learn to like something besides fries and chicken nuggets.

I discovered quite by accident, that anything in a crust was more likely to be eaten. I was on the hunt constantly for "pie" type main courses and invented many myself.

For speed, purchase pre-made pie crusts or dough and let your imaginations soar. These meat pies are so simple, if you keep a few tips in mind. For ease of preparation, I most often used single crust pie shells. However, I would sometimes cut a prepared pie crust into a round circle, and place it over the filling just to give it a variety. Any meat will do, just cook it to almost done consistency.

A popular meat with the kids is normally ground beef, mild pork sausage, or chopped chicken. This is close to shephard pie recipes, but different enough to be called "new." Sometimes you can sneak in a vegetable such as peas, corn, carrot shreds (chop the carrots very tiny and they'll hardly notice it).

Here we go and good luck, the "man's pie" always worked for me! You could call it "He/She" if you need to please everyone.

Gather these ingredients:

• 1.5 c shredded cheese, your favorite, mild cheddar is good.
• 3 c shredded mozzarella, part-skim is great.
• 1/4 cup finely chopped onion, again, no big bites.
• 2 pkg frozen chopped spinach, thawed and squeezed dry (let the kids do that, limit the spinach to 1 pkg if you're not sure the kids will accept that much green)
• 2 cans mushrooms, drained, your choice as to whether it's whole mushrooms or stems and pieces. If it's whole, or buttons, be sure and slice them. Most kids don't like to bite into big chunks of anything.
• 2 eggs, slightly beaten
• 1 lb bulk sausage, pre-browned, or the meat of your choice.
• 1 unbaked deep-dish pie shell about 9 inches. This is important because the pie shape is attractive to picky eaters.

Procedure:

1. Pre-brown beef or sausage with the onion, if you're not using already cooked meat. Drain thoroughly, the less grease, the more the kids will like it!
2. Add the squeezed spinach, and mushrooms. Stir lightly, and then fold in the eggs, and mozzarella. Spoon into your pastry shell. You do not want this to be "soupy."
3. Cover (use foil) and bake at 400 for 30 minutes.
4. Remove the foil and sprinkle the cheddar cheese (or your favorite, but cheddar seems accepted by kids). Bake an additional 10 minutes, watching carefully, do not brown the cheese. Instant rejection by the kids! Let stand for 5 minutes before slicing and then slice like you would a dessert pie.

Things to remember when cooking for and with kids:

• When introducing new dishes, go easy on the spices, salt and pepper, but do add a dash here and there for flavor.
• Bring the kids in! They are far more likely to accept a dish they helped prepare.
• No kid handles a knife in the kitchen, ever. "OOPS!" doesn't repair eyes and fingers.
• Keep the crowd to a minimum, no mom can watch everyone.
• No spitting in the food, but don't mention it unless you're worried about it. No need to give them the idea.

Fast Cleaning Tips:

• Keep the sink full of clean soapy water that includes a dash of bleach and wash up dishes as you go; change the water occasionally.
• Put away spices, flavorings, and salad/veggie chopped ingredients once you've completed the preparation, keeping the counters clear as you go.
• Keep pre-chopped veggies and onions in the refrigerator for speed and no mess cooking.
• Put messy pans back on the stove with soapy water in them and either boil it or let it simmer on low heat until the meal is over, preferrably covered to let the steam work instead of you! Clean up is a snap!
• Spray counter and let tough spots soak while you eat, making sure you're not spraying near uncovered food.
• Before sitting down, make it rule that every pot (unless it's soaking on the stove) is clean and other dishes used for preparation are clean and draining. This is a huge help for nightly mealtime success.
• Assign someone to wash as you go! Older kids should always be included in meal preparation and don't forget to drag in dear old dad. No freebies unless it's their birthday!
• Don't be a martar! No one likes the "I did everything so love me" attitude. I shared my kitchen many times when it would have been much easier to do it all myself, but I hate the clean up part. Oh, I said that already.  (Not trying to be bossy with that statement and am actually thinking of one of my own relatives in that respect. They did everything themselves, and banged the pots and pans around to be sure you noticed.)
• Be a wiper. A hot soapy rag cleans up fresh messes, cabinet doors, and drips and spills off the floor.
• Make sure the trash can has a liner and is empty before you begin. I'm weird and my trash can gets a bleach washing every couple of days. We almost never have colds or viruses and I credit that one habit.
• Keep the floor clutter free, skip the slippery wax on your floors! Re-arrange what's in the way of those moving around. The kitchen is the place for home injuries more than any other room other than the bathroom.

Making your kitchen a place for family gatherings will create lots of happy and funny memories which will be very important as every one grows.

Enjoy the Family Kitchen!