Mashed Potato Beef Bake

This dish was kind of an iffy one for me.  I thought that the cream of Mushroom was pretty overpowering.  Some people liked it that way.  I thought the Garlic was too overpowering too. It could be that I just added too much.  I couldn't find the roasted garlic version of the soup so I just added a clove of garlic, and used the plain soup. 

What I ended up doing with the last batch I made, was just left the garlic out, and didn't add any cream of mushroom to the potatoes. I think that way was the best.  So I will post my version and the link to Campbell's version. You can choose.  It all depends on whether or not you like mushroom soup.  Not my favorite by far, but I'll eat it.

Garlic Mashed Potatoes and Beef Bake

1 pound ground beef

1/2 (10 3/4 ounces) can (about a half cup) Condensed Cream of Mushroom Soup

1 bag (16 ounces) frozen vegetable combination (broccoli, cauliflower, carrots), thawed

2 cups water

3 tablespoons butter

3/4 cup milk

2 cups instant mashed potato flakes 

Heat the oven to 400°F.  Cook the beef in a 10-inch skillet over medium-high heat until well browned, stirring often to separate meat. Pour off any fat.

Stir the beef, soup, Worcestershire and vegetables in a 2-quart shallow baking dish.

Heat the water, butter in a 3-quart saucepan over medium heat to a boil. Remove the saucepan from the heat. Stir in the milk. Stir in the potatoes. Spoon the potatoes over the beef mixture.

Bake for 20 minutes or until the potato mixture is lightly browned.

Tip: I used butter flavored potato pearls and left out the butter above. Just add a little more milk or hot water to desired consistency.

To Freeze:  Make in an aluminum pan. Before baking, wrap with foil, and plastic wrap.  Freeze up to 3 months.

Recipe adapted from Campbell's Kitchen