Hachis Parmentier

I looked forward to creating this French dish that is similar to America's "Shepherd's Pie." I also was excited about creating my own beef bouillon - I have never done that before. So how did it go? Well - besides a couple mess ups, it went well and tasted delicious. And my husband - who is hard to get a response out of when it comes to food said that it was more flavorful than he thought it would be...and although that doesn't sound like much of a response..trust me coming from him it is!:)

So I made this all in one day and it wasn't too laborious. I decided to double it - since I had a ton of Russet potatoes - and that all went well until I discovered that I only had 1 lb of the cubed steak. The real unfortunate thing is that I put all of the items in the soup pot before I put in the meat - so I ended up doubling everything except for the meat (I couldn't run to the store with my baby taking a nap). While the beef and bouillon were simmering I cut up my potatoes and put them in a pot of cold salted water and put them in the fridge until I needed to cook them. This saved me time in the long run. I wasn't sure what type of sausage to get (I rarely eat sausage)...do I get ground sausage or sausage links? I was confused. I ended up using Jimmy Dean regular ground sausage and I really liked that combo with the cubed steak. I put the veggies in with the meat mixture and all was well until I realized that it looked a little too saucy when I put it in the casserole dish. I was stumped--why was it too saucy? I put the right amount of broth in....? Then while eating it I realized that it was because I only used half the amount of meat (the cubed steak)! Duh! Why didn't I realize that before I put the potatoes on and cooked it? Before I slid it into the oven I had considered draining some of the liquid out, but decided against it- well...I should have because it was a little too wet...but don't get me wrong it was delicious and I will be making it again - especially during these fall and winter months! I guess I will just learn from my mistakes and like my mom always said...practice, practice, practice.

And the bonus? Leftovers for the next 3 days....it made a lot!

Oh yes....and I am loving French Fridays with Dorie. It is fun to know that I am not alone in this adventure. And it is nice not to have to plan one meal (or dish, dessert, etc...) for the week - it is already done for me:)