The Messy Cook: World's Easiest (and Maybe Cheesiest) Shepherd's Pie

So that's a lie. It's probably not the cheesiest, but it's for sure the easiest.

Also, I've been informed that it's only shepherd's pie if it's made from lamb, and what I made was "cottage pie". But fuck the police. I do what I want. And I want to call it Shepherd's pie. So there.

I classify this recipe under the "from scratch" category with an emphasis on the quotation marks. This is the biggest cheater meal I have ever created. And to every non-cook out there, you're welcome.

Sorry for the poor quality Instagram picture. I was not prepared to blog about this.

This recipe takes 15 minutes to prep and 20 minutes to cook. Feeds 6 people (or you can eat 5 servings yourself like I did.)

All you will need for this delicacy is:

• 1 lb Ground Beef
• 2 cups INSTANT Garlic Mashed Potatoes (You can make them from scratch if you're dedicated)
• 60 gram brick of Cream Cheese (It pisses me off that this switches to metric too. Don't ask why)
• 1 cup shredded Cheddar Cheese
• 4 cups Mixed Vegetables (canned or frozen. I used canned.)
• 1 cup Beef Gravy (I got this out of a jar. You can also buy the packets and make it that way.)

Directions:

1. Pre-make instant potatoes (and the gravy if you bought the packet).
2. Heat oven to 375 degrees F.
3. Brown meat in large skillet and drain
4. Mix potatoes, cream cheese, and 1/2 cup shredded cheese until well blended.
5. Combine meat, vegetables, and gravy. 
6. Spoon into 9-inch square baking dish.
7. Cover with potato mixture and the remaining 1/2 cup of shredded cheese.
8. Bake for 20 minutes or until heated through and cheese is melted.

That's all it takes. 

Boyfriend wants me to include a segment in which I show how messy I leave his kitchen after I make things (hey, there's no room for cleanliness AND creativity.), but due to lack of photos of this adventure, I'll have to refer you to the one above where you can only see a smidgen of my mess.

Enjoy.

NV Sokol Blosser Evolution 16th Edition White Blend

Origin: Dundee Hills, Oregon | Year: 2012 | Rating: balling | Price: $12 | ABV: 12%

This is my first foray into a white blend. Once again, I picked this because of the label. Also because the top of the cork was cool. 

This lovely vino was paired with spaghetti. To switch things up from the spaghetti that I've had every night for the past two weeks, I went with Roasted Red Peppers and Garlic pasta sauce. (Yum.)

At first when I poured the wine, it looked almost clear to me, but it appeared slightly darker when there was more in the glass.

I did some research on this wine, as I always do, and I learned that it is made with Muller-Thurgau, White Riesling, Semillon, Pinot Gris, Gewurztraminer, Muscat Canelli, Chardonnay, Pinot Blanc, and Sylvaner grapes. Holy shit, that's a lot of variety. A blend, indeed.  That's fine with me. I appreciate well-rounded things.

The first thing that I thought when I tasted this wine was, "Oh my god, peaches!" Partially because I love peaches, and partially because I was happy that I had a thought other than, "So this tastes like wine."

This is a delicious summer wine. It is so yummy. So warming, but so cooling. Yum yum yum.

I apologize for this semi-incoherent entry. Blame it on the fact that I've worked for seven days straight. 

If any of my Georgia homies want to try this wine, sucks for you! I bought this one on a recent trip to Asheville. My goal was to buy local wine, but I couldn't find anything but Biltmore wine, so I bought this instead because I love Oregon.

One thing that I've learned so far about buying wine that is >$10 is that there isn't nearly as much burn. It doesn't half as much going down as cheap wine does. That may seem like a super obvious observation, but it's so true. It's so much easier to drink. I can almost chug it. 

Not that I would ever chug something that I paid almost $20 for.

It's a beautiful thing. I'm loving this adventure.

Matchbook Cabernet Sauvignon

Origin: Lake County California |  Year: 2012 | Rating: I like it a lot! | Price: $14| ABV:13.9%

This wine was an adventure of mine. I'm such a white wine snob. I've always been a picky eater. I try something once or twice and I declare for the rest of eternity that I hate it. I did it with eggs. I did it with bacon. And I did it with red wines. 

On the advice of my good friend Katherine, I decided to take a leap of faith and buy a cabernet sauvignon. In the past, I've had cheap reds, and I've choked them down. 

This is different. This is tasty. It's just a hint of sweet without the strong alcohol taste. I just so happened to pair it with spaghetti which, according to the internet, is the perfect pairing. [I totally planned that and am not eating spaghetti for the rest of the month until I get paid.]

In big people language, websites say that it has dark fruits with hints of cedar and tobacco. I'll be honest with you. These decrepit taste buds of mine don't sense any of that. I just think it's yummy and I don't taste all of the complexities.

BUT if you're willing to fork over $14 dollars for a bottle of wine and you wanna drink big girl wine for a change, this is a good one to go for. 

I didn't read any reviews before I bought it. I did the grown up thing and bought the wine because I like the label, as I always do. I can't argue with science. Everyone knows that you can judge a book by it's cover.

It's tasty, the label looks nice, and it makes me feel like an adult when I drink it.

Win, win, win.

Fancy Pants Pinot Grigio

Origin: Napa Valley, California | Year: 2012 | Rating: 9.25 out of 10 | Price: FREE (for me) | ABV: 13.15%

This one goes out to Amanda, the financier of this particular bottle of wine. I am watching her baby child, aka her dog Zelda who is a wine lover in her own right, as shown in the picture. I found it along with a note that said "Fancy Pants wine for your fancy pants wine blog!" Thank you for that!

Now, I've had pinot grigios before, but this is by far my favorite. Keep in mind that the other ones I've bought were <$9 not on sale because my cheap ass self decided that it was better to try a cheap one and see if I like the style first. Those of you with decent taste buds may scoff at that, but those of you with bargin bin taste buds like myself may fall into the same line of though. 

But yes. It's ridiculous. Obviously you are going to think that you don't like a style when you try the cheap nasty ones. Everyone hates the cheap nasty ones, especially people who like the style. It's not very indicative of the style when it has an acetote after taste.

Up until now, I did not know if I liked this style, but man, this is tasty. It's so light and fresh, and for a drink with 13% alcohol, this isn't boozy at all. 

It's not like my normal overly sweet go-tos, but I'm okay with that. Truely! It's not overly sparkling either, making it a good wine to pair with food. The internet says it's good with chicken, cheese, and fish. And as we all know, if the internet says it, it's true.

I'll admit that I read through other reviews of wines to see what they are tasting in the wine because my palate just says, "Me Katie. Me likey." and that's as in depth as it gets. So whether this is placebo or not, I'm not sure, but in a couple of reviews, I read that the tasters smelled citrus notes on it and tasted peaches or mangos slightly in the middle. And you know what? I can totally see what they are talking about with the peaches. There is just a light hint of fruitiness right there in the middle. 

I really am enjoying this. Pinot grigios are right there in the middle as far as dry or sweet wines go. It's a happy medium between both sides, and I dig that. As you can see from the picture, it's really like in color, which is cool to me. It's a lot lighter than the sparkling moscato that I just had. That surprised me. 

Overall, this wine makes me feel like more of a grown up, honestly. I'm not a badass who drinks chardonnay yet, but I do feel like this is a step in the right direction for me!

Pizzolato Moscato Dulce

Origin: Italy | Year: 2011 | Rating : 9 out of 10 | Price: $14 | ABV: 5.5%

To start with, I'm going to go ahead and warn you that I am no expert taster. My taste buds have long been numb. I blame it on a childhood full of frozen dinners and my family's cooking. My taste buds nobly sacrificed themselves to prevent future trauma.

I (errr....my boyfriend) bought this wine at a Whole Foods in Charleston, SC on vacation. I selectively chose this wine the most educated way that you can: I liked the label. 

I'm a huge fan of this wine. As I've made clear, I am a moscato junky. And while I may be trying to expand my horizons to include more than moscato, cut me some slack. I'm taking this one step at a time! No moscato cold turkey for this girl!

Alright, down to business. This wine smells crisp and light. Not the same sickly sweet that you get from cheap moscatos. It almost smells like a cider. 

As far as the taste goes, this wine is a great summer wine! Just like the smell, it is light and crisp. It's very much an easy drinker. It's lightly sweet, but in a fruity way, not a syrupy way. I'm sipping on this wine while I work on projects/quizzes/finals studying. I'm having to focus on not gulping it down. Thankfully, it is only 5.5%, so even if I finish the whole thing, I'm not going to be smashed. 

This wine is pretty bubbly. From what I've read, this wine is just a little bit shy of being classified as a sparkling wine. Because of that, it is classified as a moscato, but it is one of the more bubbly moscatos that I've ever had.

Word of warning: have a wine bottle topper, a friend to share with you, or the motivation to finish the whole bottle because this wine has a bottle cap instead of a cork or twist off.

All in all, this is a win for me. While it is twice as expensive as the cheapo brands of yore, it isn't going to break your bank, and it is super yummy.