I thought this wa a fabulous "quick" meal. I feel it is important to reply because of the negative feedback you received from the single working guy. First of all, there is an enormous difference between a working Mom and a guy who can cook for himself. AND it simply was not necessary for you to be so rude. Be careful, your immaturity is shining in your post. The beginning when you made the suggestions on you thought the dish could be improved were nice. You should have left it at that. Here is hoping that your future mother of your children never gets talked to like you spoke to this working mom. Have a great day!

Good answer.

I would suggest seasoning the meat after you drain it... otherwise you wasting delicious seasoning. For extra bonus points, I would suggest browning the meat slightly, enough to drain it, and then placing it aside. In the pan, saute some onions in olive oil, and add in garlic when the onions are almost translucent, followed by the beef maybe 3 minutes later. This will produce a great flavor, for about ten extra minutes of work, that the garlic / onion powder just cant replicate.

If you don't care about fat content and want something extra delicious, I'd use the drippings from the ground beef to make a gravy. Super simple, put equal parts flower with equal parts fat (ex. 1 flour means you need 1 cup of fat. So if you have 1/2 cup drippings, top it off with some buttah). Slowly simmer over low heat for a while, add in some nice herbs for flavor (bay leaf and rosemary would be standard) and maybe a zest of lemon. It will taste like sex makes you feel. Unless you have terrible sex, but then, you're probably alone anyways.

And please. Don't use canned veggies or instant potatoes. Go the extra mile and buy some frozen veggies and squash a potato with some butter, salt, pepper, and parsley. Ooh and garlic.

Or don't take my suggestion, and cook this meal via Beth's instructions, to tell your family how much you don't love them and would be better off without them.

And no "but I work" excuses. I'm a 24 year old single dude who works full time and I manage to cook better than this crap.

LOL at Captain Crunch... can we all guess as to why he's single? There is a huge difference between a working mom and a "single dude" only cooking for himself. Through a hungry hubby and a few kids needing help with homework and don't forget their after school activities/sports... then I bet he'd take a few shortcuts too. :)

Captain Crunch -- no wonder you're a single "dude".

I used lamb cubes, topped with mashed potatoes (sandwiched cheese between 2 layers of mashed potatoes) and baked till brown.

I put cheese on top.

I have also used cream of mushroom soup instead of brown gravy over the meat and vegetables and topped with the potatoes n sprinkle with Parmesan.. My family loves it!!!

I added a dash of Worcestershire sauce and used frozen mashed potatoes and frozen veggies as that's what I had on hand. Worked great!