Ground Beef And Potato Casserole

	A great fall/winter casserole. We enjoy it with a fresh loaf of French or Italian bread. I have been know to add chopped or shredded cabbage to this recipe and we love it that way. Prep: 30 minutes Cook: 50 minutes Servings: 4

Ingredients:

1-1/2 pounds lean or medium ground beef or turkey
1 Tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
1 green bell pepper, chopped
2-3 garlic cloves, minced or finely chopped
1 onion, chopped
1 carrot, shredded
2 celery stalks, peeled and chopped
1 heaping Tablespoon Hungarian paprika
3/4 teaspoon black pepper
1/4 teaspoon crushed pepper flakes or a dash of Tobasco Sauce
a pinch of ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground cumin
1/4 cup water
1/3 cup white or red wine (if you don't want to use wine, then low sodium beef or vegetable stock works very well)
1 packet or cube of beef bouillon

2 Tablespoons half-and-half
4-5 potatoes, peeled and sliced

Directions:

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C).
Lightly grease a casserole dish.
In a skillet over medium heat, cook the beef until evenly brown. Remove beef from skillet, reserving juices, and set aside.
Mix in the olive oil, and saute the green pepper, garlic, onion, carrot, and celery until tender.
Return beef/turkey to skillet, and season with paprika, black pepper, pepper flakes. cinnamon and cumin.
Stir in water and white or red wine until heated through.
Dissolve the beef bouillon cube or granulated beef from packet into the mixture.
Remove skillet from heat, and mix in the half-and-half.
Layer the bottom of the prepared casserole dish with enough potato slices to cover.
Place the beef and vegetable mixture over the potatoes, and top with remaining potatoes.
Cook covered for 50 minutes in a preheated oven, or until the potatoes are tender.