Cassie's BBQ Beef Shepherd's Pie

You know the saying... "If it aint broke, don't fix it." Don't mess up a good thing. That's how I feel about Cassie's recipes. I pretty much want to try them all, and I usually don't have to make big, or in this case, ANY changes to them because her recipes are already spectacular as is. I like to tweak recipes a bit to make them more of my own... it makes me feel like I had some part in creating the recipe. But I find that I rarely have to do that with her recipes... it's like she's tailoring the recipe already for ME. But obviously not for me, we just have similar tastes in food I guess!

I don't know about you guys, but when I was younger and used to think of shepherd's pie, I didn't have pleasant thoughts. It was kind of like meatloaf in my mind, just not something I wanted to try. But then again, many things turned me off as a child. I'm amazed at what I thought I didn't like. I'm so glad that my taste buds have flourished and I am able to enjoy more foods now which I never would have liked or tried as a child. If my waistline had a mind of its own, I'm sure it would disagree. It's the one suffering the bulging consequences, after all. But obviously, it doesn't have much say so when it comes to my eating habits. Hey, I like to eat.

Cook ground beef in a 10-inch skillet over medium-high heat, stirring occasionally, until beef is brown. Drain well. Stir in corn, chiles, and barbeque sauce. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Heat to boiling, reduce heat to low to keep warm.

Meanwhile, cook potatoes to fork tender in boiling water. Drain and mash to desired consistency with salt, pepper, butter, and milk. Stir in green onions, cheese, ranch, and bacon.

Spoon beef mixture onto plate or bowl and top with mashed potatoes. Serve.

This recipe is a modern take on the classic shepherd's pie, with a few fixins and additions from Cassie. I love the addition of bbq sauce, corn, chiles, and ranch. I think all of those ingredients make this a comfort meal that we like to make often, and I bet you will too.

Oh, and it has bacon. Did you guys know I like bacon? :)

Peace, and bacon grease!