Comfort Food

Sometimes a home cooked meal just makes you feel better.

My grandmother passed away on her birthday, January 31, 2010. It is a bittersweet thing, we will of course miss her... I always pictured her coming with me & my mother to pick out my wedding dress. She had impeccable taste. But she was suffering, so I wouldn't bring her back. I know she is up in heaven having the time of her life.

She was firm believer in eating, it was always: "you eat good now" or "what can I fix ya" even as her health was fading. Her funeral was on Thursday...so yesterday the whole week caught up with us. The sleet and rain just added to our mood. So it was defiantly a time for comfort food.

I decided to make Martha Stewart's Italian Pot Pies. I've made them before and they are easy and hearty. The recipe is from Everyday Food, December 2008. It is the Italian rendition of shepherd's pie.

Prep: 25 minutes
Total: 35 minutes

Ingredients

Serves 4

• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1 medium onion, finely chopped
• 2 carrots, finely chopped
• Coarse salt and ground pepper
• 1 pound ground beef sirloin, thawed if frozen
• 2 cups homemade or best-quality store-bought tomato sauce
• 1 cup all-purpose flour (spooned and leveled)
• 1/4 cup grated Parmesan (1 ounce)
• 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/4 teaspoon crushed dried rosemary
• 4 tablespoons butter, melted
• 1/2 cup whole milk

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 450 degrees, with rack in lowest position. In a large skillet, heat oil over medium. Add onion and carrots; season with salt and pepper. Cook, stirring occasionally, until tender, 6 to 8 minutes. Add beef, and cook, breaking up meat with a wooden spoon, until no longer pink, 3 to 5 minutes. Add tomato sauce; bring to a boil, reduce to a simmer, and cook, stirring occasionally, until meat mixture has thickened, 8 to 10 minutes; set aside.
2. In a medium bowl, whisk flour, Parmesan, baking powder, rosemary, and 1/2 teaspoon salt; make a well in center, and add butter and milk. Stir just until dough comes together.
3. Spoon meat mixture into four 8-ounce ramekins; mound dough on top. Place on a large rimmed baking sheet; bake until topping is golden brown and a toothpick inserted in topping comes out clean, 10 to 12 minutes.

Last night I realized I was out of tomato sauce, and with all the snow and slush it was not worth a trip to the store. So I substituted with Prego's traditional italian sauce. It gave it a lot more flavor, so it actually turned out to be a good thing!

By the time dinner was over, bellies full, we felt just that little bit better. And knowing Nan would've been pleased made it even more enjoyable.