CutthroatCharity

This is a COTTAGE PIE, not a shepard's pie. Shepard's pie has some sort of sheep meat-either lamb or mutton. Cottage pie is the same thing made with anything other than sheep meat. Beef, tofu, fowl, vegan...all cottage pies. With that said, this is a delicious & fun version of cottage pie that I'll be making again. It was quick, easy, & delicious.

I love it so much that I got a special silicone 'microwave popper' to make it in! Add other seasonings, too, like lemon pepper, Italian seasoning with a bit of parmesan cheese, chili powder, 5 spice powder, or nutritional yeast. My Husband's favorite is to add5 spice powder with a little powdered wasabi. To make it more like theatre popcorn, substitute virgin coconut oil for the olive oil!

I found this recipe a few years ago & despite this being a family favorite, I'm just now getting around to rating it. (sorry) I've given it 4 1/2 stars as-is & and extra 1/2 star for its flexibility& how we make it now. My husband calls it '2-can Hoppin John' because it's "2 cans or boxes of everything". While we really liked it as written (plus the extra box of rice because I read it wrong the first time & we liked the extra rice), I wanted a little bit ...more...and it IS quick, but many nights we need something ready & waiting for us when we get home, so here's what we've changed: I now add a diced onion & some minced garlic to the sausage while browning, then use a slotted spoon to transfer into a large crockpot. Add a link of Andouille sausage, sliced, then all the listed ingredients. I also add-in 2 drained cans of sliced mushrooms, 2 cans of diced chilies or a few diced fresh peppers like jalapeno or serrano (or use about 29 oz of Ro-tel), & either some drained canned or bite-sized fresh greens such as collard, mustard, turnip, kale, &/or spinach (I eyeball it & use any left over greens for other meals). Set it on low & in 4 hours it's ready, but we've had it go as long as 10 hours & it's still tasty, just a bit mushier. Also tastes great the next day whether as written or with my changes.

Would give this 10 stars if I could!! So easy, my Husband made it!!! This really IS so easy & turns out SO GOOD!!! I think it's even better than that chain restaurant that made it famous, & I was able to compare it on the same day (rehet homemade for lunch, then a friend's surprise visit to take me to supper-her treat, her pick). Changes made: I always substitute evaporated milk for cream when I can (1 can for this recipe), & the husband couldn't find the red pepper flakes so he used a heavy sprinkle of cayenne pepper instead. Note: Since VICHYSSOISE is, basically, cold potato soup, I gave this Zuppa Toscana soup a taste cold, & ended up eating the rest of the leftovers that way! SO GOOD!! We only had leftovers because I portioned this out into storage containers while serving & there's only 2 of us.