Are you ready for Halloween? We spent the weekend sawing, cutting, taping, painting and shaping Jackson's costume and I think we just might be ready in time for the parade around the school tomorrow morning. This year's outfit requires copious amounts of spray paint, which isn't exactly ideal when you're living amongst the aftermath of stormy Sandy. What were we thinking? Here's a photo from Saturday morning where we spent a chunk of time at Home Depot buying supplies for his costume. Any guesses as to what he's being this year?
So, while I spend a bulk of my day shuttling between the house and spray paint alley the storage shed, I wanted to leave you with these beef and bean pies. They were just the thing for dinner last night, when I had exactly 30 minutes to get something on the table. Something hot and comforting, not to mention Halloween themed - this is Ben's holiday so we try to add in some spooky details wherever we can - and what could be better than a chili-eqsue concoction topped with cheddar cheese and pie crust?
When I was looking for some quick dinner inspiration, I went and checked out the Life Made Delicious website for ideas, and was completely smitten with these individual beef and bean pot pies. The tops in the original recipe were made with a Bisquick base, but since I've stocked my freezer with half a dozen pie crusts, I pulled one out for this meal instead. A bowl was used to cut circles from the pastry and it took 3 seconds and a paring knife to create some seemingly scary faces. Perfect for Halloween night dinner, don't you think?
Beef and Bean Pies
Adapted from Life Made Delicious
Serves 4
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 lb. lean ground beef
- 1-19oz. can red kidney beans, rinsed and drained
- 1 cup spaghetti sauce (or crush tomatoes)
- 3 tablespoons brown sugar
- 2 tablespoons chili powder
- Salt and pepper
- 1 cup grated cheddar cheese
- 1 ball of pie dough
- 1 egg beaten with 1 tablespoon water, for the egg wash
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Place four oven-safe soup bowls on a baking sheet and set aside.
Heat the oil in a medium skillet set over medium-high heat. Add the beef and cook, breaking it up with a wooden spoon. When it's no longer pink, add the beans, sauce, brown sugar and chili powder. Bring the sauce to a boil and reduce the heat, simmering for 5 minutes. Season with salt and pepper and remove from the heat.
While the sauce simmers, lightly dust a work surface with flour and roll out the pie dough. Use a bowl that's similar in size to your soup bowls, and cut out four dough circles. Feel free to cut Jack o'lantern faces into the dough using a paring knife.
Divide the beef and bean mixture evenly between the bowls. Top each with 1/4 cup grated cheese. Cover with the pie dough circle and lightly brush with egg wash.
Bake for 15 minutes, or until the dough is golden brown.
Disclosure: I'm working with Life Made Delicious this year as part of their blogger program.
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