Bacon and cheese lovers rejoice–here’s a potato casserole you’re sure to love!
Here’s a recipe I couldn’t wait to make! This is one potato casserole that can wear many hats.
I saw it on Pinterest a while ago and thought this was my kind of side dish–or main dish because it’s packed with cheese and bacon. You could serve this potato casserole along with eggs at breakfast. They’d make a great change from the usual home fries. Plus, there’s a good bit of bacon so that’d eliminate having to cook additional to go along with the eggs. For brunch, this potato casserole could be served just by itself. It’s hearty and filling.
The recipe I adapted came from Mama Plus One who said she found it in an old family recipe box. I’m sure glad she did find this because it’s a super recipe and a real keeper!
I made slight adaptations to the recipe. First, I had no green onions. I love them and usually have a bunch but recently the price skyrocketed on those from under one dollar to almost two dollars. At that price, I will only buy if I cannot substitute them with something else.
Each spring, my front and side yard is literally covered with early wild chives–and they cost me nothing and taste great. So what I did was sub some regular onion and some wild chives for the green onion. If you are not lucky enough to have the chives growing all over the place, then regular onion will do.
I cut the recipe in half because the original served a crowd–10 to 16. However, I didn’t halve the cheese and used only slightly less mayonnaise. I didn’t use the full package of bacon, I used 8 slices. That’s a little more than half a regular 16 oz pack of bacon, but I wanted an intense flavor.
I will caution that because of the mayonnaise and the abundance of cheese, that the final cooked casserole is a bit oily. What I do is dab the top with some paper towels, just like I do when I make my scalloped potatoes gratin. And since this potato casserole has no sauce to speak of, I use a slotted spoon to serve them. I’m tempted to make them next time with a “light” mayonnaise to eliminate some of the oil.
- 4 cups potatoes, diced small (see NOTES)
- ¼ cup finely diced onions
- 2 tbs fresh chives, snipped
- 2 cups shredded sharp cheddar cheese
- ¾ cup mayonnaise
- 8 slices crisp cooked bacon, diced
- ½ tsp salt (optional)
- ¼ tsp pepper
- Preheat oven to 325 degrees F.
- Mix all ingredients together in a large bowl, making sure the potatoes are well coated with the mayonnaise.
- Place potato mixture in a 2- quart baking dish (you can also use a 9 x 9- or 11 x 7-inch pan)
- You may sprinkle a bit of extra cheese on the top, but that is optional.
- Bake for 90 minutes or until potatoes are done in the center of the casserole.
- SLOW COOKER DIRECTIONS:
- Mix all ingredients and place in a 4-6 quart slow cooker.
- Cover and cook on low 6-8 hours, high 4-6 hours.
- Bear in mind the top will not brown in the slow cooker.
You don't have to bother peeling the fresh potatoes. Just make sure to scrub them well before dicing.
Yum
Looking for recipes I can freeze and serve later.
Marnie–check out bhg.com since they recently had a collection of recipes you can make, freeze and serve later.