Beef and Biscuit Casserole

This is one that I just tried for the first time today.  And I am currently eating it.  It's quite tasty.  This comes from my "Blue Ribbon Country Cook Book."


Ingredients:

• 1 lb. ground beef
• I use ground turkey, which is $1.60 per pound
• 1/2 cup chopped onion
• About $.60 for one onion
• 1 8-ounce can of tomato sauce
• $.32
• 1/4 cup of ketchup
• 1 bottle is around $1.50
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/8 teaspoon pepper
• 1/2 teaspoon basil
• 4 ounces of Colby Cheese
• 1 package (10 slices) of cheese was $2.  I used 4 slices.
• 1 tube of refrigerated biscuits
• $.50

Dishes and Utensils:

• A 1.5 quart baking dish
• A cutting board
• A knife
• A large skillet

Total Cost: $3.65

People fed: 2 -4

Cooking time: 40 minutes

Instructions:

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.  Then brown your meat.  The recipe calls for half of a cup of onion.  I used half an onion.  Really it's your decision.  Anyhow, chop up as much onion you want to use.

Once the meat is about half browned, add the onion.  Once it is fully browned, turn off the heat and add the tomato sauce, ketchup, salt, pepper, and basil.  When I made this I used exactly zero measuring cups.  I just covered the top with a sparse layer of ketchup and figured that would be close.  Then I added a spice layer* of salt and basil, followed by a sparse layer of pepper.

*I'm coining a new phrase.  A spice layer is an amount of a spice that sufficiently covers a food, but not so well covered that you can't see the underlying substance.  It should be dense enough that you don't think there are spots devoid of spice, but not so much spice that there are areas where it is difficult to see what's underneath.

After you mix everything together, put one layer of your meat/tomato goodness in your cooking dish.  The put a layer of cheese on top.  And another layer of meat/tomato.  Then another of cheese.  Finish my putting the rest of the meat/tomato mix on top and insert your dish into the oven for 10 minutes.  After 10 minutes, remove from the oven and turn the oven up to 450.  Cover the top of your dish with some of the biscuits.  I used 8.  The key is to cover your dish without the biscuits touching.  Return your dish to the oven for another 10 minutes.  Remove... and you're done!

It should look something like this.

Just out of the oven

One serving of amazingness.