Shepherd's Pie

Years ago, after Kevin and I got married (I make it sound like we've been married for ages and it hasn't even been 5 years!), I decided I was craving shepherd's pie even though I had never had it before (weird I know - I craved Indian food too without ever tasting it). I googled a recipe (this was obviously prior to Pinterest!) and found some crazy complex recipes. I don't do crazy complex recipes so I decided to just wing it. Sometimes my "wing it" recipes flop and sometimes they turn out to be yummy. This turned out to be the latter and super easy - my requirements when cooking! Best of all everyone gobbled it up - well except for Parker, but that's b/c he wasn't feeling well. He normally eats a huge serving when I make it though!

Here's a pic of Avery scraping up her bowl!! Side note: she did pretty good using her spoon, but did ask me a few times to help her scoop up some food. Her sweet little please for "heh" (help) were so cute! If I didn't move fast enough, her left hand just scooped it up - she def fished those carrots out fast with her chubby little fingers! The carrots were the first thing she ate!

Ingredients:
coconut oil (or olive oil - we've been out of olive oil for a while so I've been using coconut for everything - it smells so yummy when it's heating up!)
1 lb lean ground turkey
onions, diced (I used 2 small white onions b/c those were the only ones I had)
3-4 cloves of garlic, minced
1 packet of brown gravy mix
frozen peas, corn, carrots (whatever veggies you like; I've thrown spinach in there too)
shredded cheese (for topping - I grabbed a couple handfuls)
boxed mashed potatoes (you can make your own mashed potatoes, but I actually like "fake" potatoes and it's super easy - I made 4 servings)
butter (I don't measure this, but use the box of mashed potatoes as a guide)
milk (use box of mashed potatoes as a guide)
water (use box of mashed potatoes as a guide)
parsley
black pepper

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

2. Heat coconut oil under medium/high heat. Add ground turkey once oil is heated. FYI, the oil is not required, but sometimes the turkey sticks to the pan since it is so lean - I just use a small amount to coat the bottom of the pan).

3. Add onions and frozen veggies (turkey does not need to be fully browned). Stir until veggies are heated through.

4. Add mashed potatoes, butter, milk, and water in a bowl (prepare as indicated on the box since it varies from brand to brand) - I made 4 servings. Microwave for 2 minutes.

5. Add gravy packet to turkey mixture with about 3/4 cup of cold water. My gravy packet called for 1 cup of water, but the frozen veggies released some water and the turkey was still slightly frozen in the middle when I started to cook it so I omitted some of the water. Mix gravy and turkey mixture together and allow it to bubble for a few minutes so gravy will thicken.

6. Scoop mashed potatoes on top of turkey mixture and spread in an even layer (or somewhat even).

7. Top with shredded cheese and place in oven for about 10 minutes until cheese melts.

FYI your gravy may bubble up to the top of the mashed potatoes and cheese - it's ok, you won't have a big soggy mess. The gravy will go back down once you pull the pan out of the oven and let it rest for a few minutes.

Enjoy!!!