Works for me Wednesday- Last Minute meals?

This week on Works for me Wednesday we are going to be talking about those last minutes meals. You know what I am talking about...those nights when you don't realize until about 5:30 that you haven't even thought about what dinner for the evening was going to be??? What do you do? For me...any recipe that deals with "Hamburger" will do the trick lol. However I do have a few recipes of things that I normally have around the house. I usually always have stock of instant mashed potatoes (not my fav but come in handy in a pinch), hamburger, rice, cheese, and some type of canned veggie. The 1st recipe is the one I use most often because it is quick, cheap, and only takes 1 pan to prepare it in (which = easy clean up..a plus in my book!)

Shepard's Pie

***1 pound pre cooked ground beef
instant mashed potatoes (enough to cover the bottom of a 9x13 pan)
a can of corn
cheddar cheese

We do this in layers....1st layer the mashed potatoes on the bottom of the pan making sure to spread them from corner to corner, then dump on the can of corn, then the ground beef spreading it from corner to corner. Last sprinkle on cheddar cheese (however much fits your fancy) and pop it in an oven at 350. Once the cheese is bubbly and melted...your ready!

Whatever you want to call it

This one doesn't really have a name....its more like whatever I can find I throw in a opt with rice and ground beef lol. However, based on what is normally in the house..this is how it goes...

1 lb ground beef
enough rice for each person in the family
1-2 green bell peppers, chopped
1 can of diced tomatoes
1 onion, chopped
basil
oregano
salt & pepper to taste

Cook your ground beef in a skillet. Add in the onion and green bell peppers and cook until well done. Toss in the can of diced tomatoes along with the seasonings to your liking (I usually use about a teaspoon of each). Serve over rice and you have a nice hot meal:)

***To save time, when I go to the meat processor and buy hamburger, I usually buy at least 10 pounds at a time (we only use 1lb per meal so adjust to your family). Out of that 10 pounds I will go ahead and cook up about 3 pounds of it and throw it in the freezer. This way when I am indeed in a hurry, my hamburger is already cooked.

For more ideas check out what Shannon has to say at Rocks in My Dryer!