Cowboy Casserole

Yee Haw!! Who doesn't love a good casserole? You can't fail with them and most of the time you can add and subtract what you want to create a new recipe to your liking. Tonight I tried a new recipe "Cowboy Casserole". Think shepherds pie with a cowboy twist. The one thing I love about casseroles is the fact that most of the time you can prepare them a night in advance so you have less cooking time the day before, and they usually can be thrown in a slow cooker if desired. Lucky for me I have a husband that gets home before me so he can throw it in the oven before I get home! So I got this recipe from a e-mail list that I am on and decided to give it a try. I prepared the hamburger mixture last night and then did the rest (with the help of Corey putting it in the oven) when I got home, dinner was ready in 15 minutes, beat that McDonalds! :-) So try this out and let me know what you think. What did you add or take away? (For example the original recipes calls for crumbled bacon to be added to the potatoes and fried onions but I didn't feel like dealing with that tonight so I didn't add it)

Cowboy Casserole

Ingredients:
1 lb ground beef
1 onion, finely chopped
1/3 cup breadcrumbs
1/4 cup BBQ sauce
1 egg
2 tsp chili powder
3/4 tsp salt
24 oz tub garlic mashed potatoes
1/4 c french fried onions
2/3 cup Mexican blend shredded cheese

Directions:

Combine beef, onion, breadcrumbs, BBQ sauce, egg, chili powder & salt. Press into bottom of sprayed 8 x 8 inch baking dish. Bake @ 375o for 20 – 25 min until cooked through. Pour off excess fat. While meat is cooking, heat potatoes per pkg directions. Stir in onions. Spread potatoes on top of beef mix & sprinkle with cheese. Broil 4– 5 min until lightly browned.