Dear Customers,
Two down – one to go! I’m speaking of course about the three first months of the year, those with the worst weather. Then comes March which is an enigma. We can get snow, sunshine, ice, balmy breezes – the whole megillah-all over a period of the 4 short weeks of the third month!
Lent, the 40-day period of self-reflection and self-denial begins this week on Wednesday, March 5th and continues up till the Saturday before Easter. As kids, there was almost a competition between me and my classmates to see who could “give up” the hardest sacrifice for Lent. Now, at my age, I prefer to try to do “extra” things rather than give anything up!
With cold weather still on the horizon, I’d like to share a recipe I discovered many years ago and kept in my files because, upon tasting it my wife deemed it “MY FAVORITE!” It’s simply called Heather’s Favorite Rutabaga Pie in my cookbook program, and lest the name put you off, a rutabaga is a root vegetable similar to a turnip or even a carrot and when it’s in a “pie” you won’t be able to tell the difference! It’s just tasty!
| 3 cups diced peeled rutabaga | 2 cups diced peeled potatoes | 1 pound x-lean ground beef |
| ½ cup chopped onion | ½ cup diced celery | ¼ cup steak sauce (A1) |
| 1 tsp salt (or Cajun seasoning) | ¼ tsp black pepper | 8oz shredded jalapeno cheese (optional) |
You can make your own pie crust if you’ve a mind to. Or you can take the easy way out and grab a package of ready-made pie crusts from the dairy case. However, the last time I made this, I left the pie crusts out entirely and we just ate the filling!
DIRECTIONS: cook the rutabagas and potatoes in boiling, salted water until tender. Drain and set aside. In a skillet over medium heat, cook the beef, onion, and celery until the meat is browned and the vegetables are tender. Drain and add the rutabagas, potatoes, steak sauce and seasonings. Filla large deep pie plate and put top crust on, cutting a few holes to let steam escape.
Bake at 425°F for 10 minutes then reduce the heat to 350° and cook an additional 30-45 minutes or until crust is golden brown!