corn Archives | The Good Hearted Woman

Tis the season. (No, not that season.) It’s Farmers Market season. That magical time of year when local markets are busting at the seams and roadside stands pop up nearly everywhere. Those long, hot summer days when we load up on every sweet, luscious fruit and vegetable we can get our mouths on, before they disappear for another year. Sure you can buy things year round in the store, but they just aren’t the same, and we all know it. Especially when it comes to things like Peaches, Tomatoes, Watermelon… and Corn.

Ahh, Corn. Fresh corn. Freshly grilled corn. Mmmm…

Compound butter for corn on the cob! The beautiful part about it is that you can experiment to your heart’s content. Last night we ended up having roasted corn with Lemon Basil Butter, and it was delicious. I just followed the recipe for Mesquite Cilantro Butter, substituting McCormick’s Perfect Pinch® Lemon & Pepper Seasoning for the Grill Mates® Mesquite Seasoning, and basil for the cilantro. I loved how the lemon flavor really brightened the flavor of the corn.

I love the open-corn method (as in the video) if I’m wanting corn with that carmelly grilled flavor. It’s especially wonderful for using as an ingredient in salads and such. But for corn on the cob, we prefer the method shown below. It results in a decadently moist ear of corn that bursts with delicious corn goodness. (Bonus: Super-fast husk removal – no fussing with corn silk at all!)

To roast corn this way, simply throw the corn, husks and all, onto your barbecue. Turn them every few minutes and in about 15 mintues, you will have perfectly raosted corn. Then just cut the end off and slide the husk and all the corn silk off the other end. It doesn’t get easier than this! (If I had only known about this method years ago. I can’t even count how many hours of my life have been spent shucking corn!)

Whether you choose to grill it with the corn exposed as in the video, or with the husk still on as above, the compound butter makes every bite of corn pop with flavor. (Ha! I totally didn’t plan that, but there it is 🙂 )

Finally, while I was writing this post, I discovered something very cool on the McCormick website – their FlavorPrint Profile. If you click through and answer just a few questions about your personal tastes, the website will use your FlavorPrint Profile to match up “recipe recommendations that get you. Every time.” Every FlavorPrint Profile is a little different, and when you are done, you get a cool little icon to represent your profile.

This sounded like an interesting concept, so I thought I would give it a try. The brief FlavorPrint Profile questionnaire took me less than a minute to complete, and asked me preference questions about everything from cilantro to cheese cake. The questions also seemed to vary depending on the answers (I did it a couple of time, just for you). Once complete, I did a search for “grilled corn,” and a ton of delicious sounding recipes popped up, each indicating how closely it matched my FlavorPrint Profile. (As you can see, today’s Grilled Corn recipe is a 89% match for my personal profile.)

When you finish, the website offers you one recipe that is specifically matched to you – no strings attached. If you want to give them your email address, you can search through McCormick’s seemingly limitless collection of recipes, with the results displayed indicating how each recipe matches up to your personal tastes.

Disclosure: This post was sponsored by Viral Gains, and I was financially compensated for writing it. Grilled Corn, FlavorPrint icon and FlavorPrint Search Results images courtesy of McCormick.com. All other photos used are mine. Grilled Corn video courtesy of Kitchy Kitchen and McCormicks/Viral Gains. All opinions expressed are my own.

Shepherd’s Pie is classic comfort food – rich, warm, and deeply satisfying. One bite of this time-tested family favorite will wrap you in a blanket of goodness as cozy as a winter fire. It’s just that good.

This post may contain affiliate links, but don’t worry – they won’t bite.

Some years ago, on the day after St Patrick’s Day, my daughter Gracie and her father were t-boned by a truck-driving teenager. Gracie sustained multiple life-threatening injuries, and was admitted to ICU, where she stayed for nearly a month.

At the time, in addition to nine-year old Gracie, we had four other young children, including an eight-week old newborn. While the girls’ father held down the fort at home, Baby Em and I slept and lived at the hospital with Gracie. I survived the first week almost entirely on saltine crackers and Jello Pudding cups from the ICU refrigerator.

It was several days before I finally made my first real trip home – to take a real shower, revive my spirits, and visit my other girls and their father.

When I arrived, I found my dear friend Bev and some other ladies in my kitchen, delivering dinner to my family. After a short visit with the ladies, I went to shower and clean up. I read the girls a book, sang them a song or two, and packed up for the next week.

Almost as an afterthought, I spooned some of the potato-topped casserole that Bev had left us into a plastic tub to take with me, and then I buckled Em back into her carseat and sped off to the hospital.

It wasn’t until late in the night, as my injured child slept amidst her web of tubes and wires, that realized I was hungry. When I opened the plastic container, the sterile hospital air filled with amazing savory goodness.

Padding down to the Parents’ Kitchen, I microwaved it, and then, fork full by fork full, I let that Shepherd’s Pie wrap me in a blanket of warmth, kindness, generosity – and hope. Even today, the memory – standing there alone in the hospital kitchen eating Bev’s Shepherd’s Pie – brings me to tears.

From that time on, making Shepherd’s Pie has been a labor of love, and in that spirit, we have made it a Valentine’s Day tradition. It is warm, comforting, enduring, and hope-filled – and serving it to the people who mean the most to me in this world is one way I show my love to them.

Bev’s original recipe was A-Mazing, but over the years I’ve made a few tweaks. Most notably, the original recipe calls for peas, but I substitute diced yams because, as I mention frequently, I strongly dislike cooked peas.

5 from 6 votes

Shepherd's Pie

Prep Time45 mins

Cook Time30 mins

Total Time1 hr 15 mins

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Course: Main Dish Casserole

Cuisine: Comfort Food

Servings:

Calories: 400kcal

Author: Renée ♥ The Good Hearted Woman

Ingredients

Filling

1 lb ground beef or ground turkey
2 Tbls olive oil
1 small yam peeled and diced ¼"
1 large onion minced
2 medium carrots peeled and diced ¼"
1 lb mushrooms chopped
Salt and black pepper to taste
5 Tbsp flour (I use Wondra to avoid clumping)
1 Tbsp ketchup or more if needed
½ cup heavy whipping cream
1 ¾ cup vegetable broth
¾ cup red wine or apple juice
2 Tbsp Worcestershire sauce
2 Tbsp fresh thyme chopped

Topping

1 ½ lbs russet potatoes peeled and cut into 1-inch cubes
½ lb sweet potatoes peeled and cut into 1-inch cubes
2 Tbsp butter
½ cup heavy whipping cream
Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
1 large egg

Instructions

Adjust oven rack to upper middle position and preheat oven to 375°.

Filling

Brown ground beef in a large skillet. Remove from skillet, drain and set aside.
In the same large skillet, heat olive oil over medium heat.
Add yams, onions, and carrots and cook, stirring frequently until everything is tender.
Add mushrooms and cook until mushrooms soften and release their juices.
Sprinkle flour over everything, and then squirt in ketchup. Stir and cook over medium-low heat for about one minute.
Add cream and cook about another minute. Add wine or juice, Worcestershire sauce, and thyme.
Simmer over medium heat, stirring frequently, until mixture is thick but still saucy, 5-8 minutes.
Add browned ground beef to the mixture in skillet and stir to combine. Pour mixture into a 2-quart casserole dish.

Topping

In a large saucepan over high heat, bring potatoes, sweet potatoes, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and water to cover to boil.
Reduce and simmer until tender, 15-20 minutes; until tender.
Drain potatoes. Add butter and cream to potatoes and mash until smooth.
Season with salt and pepper.
Carefully spread prepared potatoes over meat and vegetable filling, using a spatula or large spoon to smooth the top.
In a small bowl, make an egg wash by whisking together 1 tablespoon water with egg.
Brush the top of the potatoes with egg wash, and then drag a fork across the top to make ridges.
Put in oven and bake until the filling is bubbling, about 15-20 minutes.
Turn on broiler and cook until top is golden brown, 3-5 minutes.
Remove and cool 10 minutes. Serve.

Nutrition

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I’m sharing this recipe on the Weekend Potluck Recipe Linkup.
Check it out for more great recipes!

**Is this Shepherd’s Pie or Cottage Pie?**

Technically, this is a recipe for Beef Cottage Pie.

**What’s the difference between Shepherd’s Pie and Cottage Pie?**

The ingredients and directions for making Shepherd’s Pie and Cottage Pie (also known as Farmer’s Pie) are exactly the same, except for the primary protein.

Shepherd’s Pie is traditionally made with lamb. (Hence, the Shepherd.)

Cottage Pie is named for its primary protein: Turkey Cottage Pie, Chicken Cottage Pie, Beef Cottage Pie, etc. You get the idea. The only protein that doesn’t go into Cottage Pie is lamb or mutton. (Because that would make it Shepherd’s Pie.)

Why don’t you change the name of this recipe to “Beef Cottage Pie” or “Beef Farmer’s Pie”?

First off, I believe that the delineation between shepherd and cottage and farmer is in great part a regional issue. In my neck of the woods, if you go into a restaurant and order Shepherd’s Pie from the menu, you will almost always be served a beef-based pie. If you invite us to dinner and tell us that you will be serving Shepherd’s Pie, we will not be expecting lamb. More to the point though, I have been making this casserole and calling it Shepherd’s Pie for two decades, so I’m sticking with it.

Bottom line: this the best in cozy comfort food, no matter what you call it!

Hope that clears everything up for everyone.

I took these images while on a Valentine’s Getaway in the Columbia River Gorge. My thanks to the Columbia River Gorge Hotel for loaning me a fancy plate!

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Who in your life would savor some Shepherd’s Pie?

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Looking for a unique, budget-friendly Valentine’s Day treat?

Check out these Personalized Homemade Fortune Cookies, complete with Takeout Box DIY and Printable Valentine’s Day Fortunes!

Grilled Corn on the Cob {with Compound Butter}

Best Shepherd’s Pie Ever: Comfort Food for Body & Soul

Shepherd’s Pie is classic comfort food – rich, warm, and deeply satisfying. One bite of this time-tested family favorite will wrap you in a blanket of goodness as cozy as a winter fire. It’s just that good.

This post may contain affiliate links, but don’t worry – they won’t bite.