Cheating at Shepherd's pie...

So it was exactly 3 degrees when I got home from work last night... (up from the -5 that it was when I left that morning..) It might surprise people to know that this is not AT ALL normal for Colorado... there was ice INSIDE or freaking windows, for goodness sake!!

Clearly we needed hot, hearty food - STAT!

I dug out some frozen beef stew left over from a week or two ago, thawed it out and added some extra peas and carrots to the mix and spread it in a baking dish... on top of that went a trusty package of "baby red" instant mashed potatoes, and it all got topped with a sprinkle of cheddar and some paprika and into the oven...

just 15 short minutes later it was bubbly on the bottom, crusty on the top, and just the thing to chase away these obscene temps...

Now if only I could use the stuff to insulate our windows...