Mashed Potato Layer Bake

I hope that everyone had a great Thanksgiving! We did!  I've had some sick kiddos the past couple of weeks, so I apologize for not posting.  But hey, there's no one more important to me that my husband and children.

This year, my sister-in-law brought this delicious dish to our Thanksgiving dinner. No lie, I could have eaten the whole pan... yeah it was THAT good!  She got the recipe from Kraft. I like how simple it is to make and yet tastes like you slaved over the hot stove all day. 

To cook the potatoes, you can bake them at 350 degrees until tender or just cube them and boil them until tender.  I've even cooked potatoes in the microwave for about 5-10 minutes until tender. For the best flavor, I'd probably bake them. If you have the time that is.

Mashed Potato Layer Bake



3-1/4 lb. baking potatoes (about 7), peeled, chopped and cooked

 1/2 lb.  sweet potatoes (about 3), peeled, chopped and cooked

 1 tub (8 oz.) Chive & Onion Cream Cheese divided

 1/2 cup  Sour Cream, divided

 1/4 tsp. Salt

¼ tsp Pepper

 1/4 cup  shredded or grated Parmesan Cheese, divided

 1/4 cup Cheddar Cheese, divided

Heat oven to 375°F.

Place potatoes in separate bowls. Add half each of the cream cheese spread and sour cream to each bowl; season with salt and pepper. Mash until creamy.

Stir half the Parmesan into white potatoes. Stir half the Cheddar into sweet potatoes. Layer half each of the potatoes in 2-qt. clear casserole. Repeat layers.

Bake 15 min. Top with remaining cheeses; bake 5 min. or until melted.

Make Ahead- Assemble casserole as directed, but do not add the cheese topping. Refrigerate casserole and cheese topping separately up to 3 days. When ready to serve, bake casserole (uncovered) as directed, increasing baking time as needed until casserole is heated through. Top with remaining cheeses and continue as directed.

Italian Potatoes

I love red potatoes.  There are so many fun things that you can do with them. Last night I made them Italian style and served them with the Chicken Parmesan.  My kids loved them!

Italian Potatoes

12 red potatoes

4-6 tbsp butter

2-3 tbsp olive oil

1/2 tsp salt (or to taste)

1/4 tsp pepper

2 tsp Italian seasoning

1-2 tbsp olive oil

Coat a cookie sheet with olive oil. 

Cube potatoes and arrange in a single layer on the cookie sheet.

Cut up butter into chunks and arrange over the potatoes.

Sprinkle salt, pepper and Italian seasoning over the top of the potatoes.

Bake at 425 degrees for 35-45 minutes or until golden brown.  Stirring every 10-15 minutes.

Zuppa Toscana

This is my favorite soup at Olive Garden.  It's seriously delicious!  One thing I found in making it, if you like really spicy soup, use the hot Italian sausage.  I was a little too much for me right now.  My kids really enjoyed the flavor but not the spice. They even ate the kale! Next time I think I will make it with the mild stuff. Just a heads up for ya. 

Also, I didn't have cream or chicken broth on hand.  I made the broth out of chicken bullion and substituted cream for 1/2 and 1/2. I also added a little extra half and half to make up for the lack of heavy cream. 

I read the instructions wrong and just left the meat in the pot from the beginning.  It broke the meat down into very small pieces but I don't mind that.  It actually married the flavors really well by doing that. You can also just add it back at the end if you like.

Zuppa Toscana



Yields 8-10 servings

1 lb ground Italian sausage
1 large white onion, diced
4 cloves garlic, pureed
10 cups chicken broth
1 pound (about 3 large) Russet potatoes, sliced into disks
1 cup heavy cream (I used 1 1/2 cups of 1/2 and 1/2)
1/4 of a bunch (about 3-4 cups) kale, torn into bite sized pieces
Salt and pepper, to taste

In a large soup pot, sauté together the ground sausage until the meat is browned. (drain fat if desired. I sauteed the onions and garlic with it. )When meat is almost cooked through, sauté the onions and garlic until softened, about 10 to 15 minutes. Add the chicken broth and heat until boiling. Add the sliced potatoes, cover, and simmer until potatoes are tender, about 20 minutes. Add the cream and kale and cook until heated thoroughly.

recipe adapted from The Pastry Affair

Black Angus' Baked Potato Soup

This has got to be the best potato soup that I have ever tasted!  I got the recipe from a friend of mine. I'm not sure if it's a copy cat or their actual recipe, but either way it's delightful! I know it's getting a little warm for soups right now, but I love my soups even in the dead of summer, so I wanted to post it. 

Black Angus' Baked Potato Soup

4 Lg. Baked potatoes

2/3 C. Butter

2/3 C. Flour

6 C. Milk

4 green onions (diced)

12 slices bacon, cooked crisply and chopped

¼ tsp. pepper

½ tsp. salt

1 ½ C cheddar cheese, shredded

8 oz sour cream

Bake Potatoes. Remove skins and discard. Put rest of potato in mixing bowl . Set aside. In a large pot, melt butter; then add flour. Whisk to paste. Cook for one minute. Add Milk. Stir constantly until thick and bubbly. Remove from heat. Add potatoes, salt, pepper, bacon and green onion. Stir until combined. Add cheese and stir until melted. Add sour cream. Serve in soup bowls or bread bowls. Top with extra cheese, onion, bacon, and/or sour cream.

Tip: if you need to, smash the potatoes up witha a wisk or a potato masher either in the bowl or in the pot.

Ham and Potato Casserole

My mom used to make this for us all growing up.  I tweaked it a little to accommodate my families tastes.  She used to do this same recipe, but add frozen peas to it. She also left out the cheese.  This is a great way to use some of those Easter leftovers.

I apologize for the picture. My camera phone does not do this dish justice!

Ham and Potato Casserole

8 Medium potatoes cubed (4-5 large)

2-3 cups cubed ham

1 large can cream of mushroom soup

1/2 cup milk

1 cup sour cream

1 cup shredded cheddar cheese (optional)

2 cups frozen peas (optional)

salt and pepper to taste

Boil the potatoes until they are firm but cooked through. In a separate bowl, combine all ingredients. Including cooked potatoes.  Stir until combined. Pour into a 9x13 Baking dish. Bake at 350 for 20-25 minutes.

Twice Baked Potatoes

Here's a great idea on how to use some of those leftover potatoes sitting in the pantry.  The nice thing about this dish, is that you can custom make them without much effort.  Just make the basic recipe and then top it with whatever you and your family likes.

Twice Baked Potatoes

4 large baking potatoes

1 cube butter

1 cup sour cream

salt and pepper

Cheese

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Scrub potatoes really well and place on a cookie sheet.  Coat all sides with oil, (vegetable, canola, olive) This helps to make it crispy. Poke the potatoes multiple time with a fork. (this keeps them from exploding in your oven) Bake at 400 for just over an hour. Or until they are cooked through.

When they are done, allow them to cool slightly.  When they are cool enough to handle, lay potato on a side and slice long ways taking off the top 1/3 of the potato. Scoop out the 2/3 portion of the potato into a bowl, leaving a little bit around the edges to provide support. (Scoop out the 1/3 portion also if you need extra potato to add to the mix.)

Smash or mix potato "pulp" with softened butter, sour cream and salt and pepper. (you can add a little milk to make it more creamy if you want) If you use egg beaters, be sure not to over mix or it will get too sticky.

Fill the potato boat with the mixture and top with cheese. (we like sharp cheddar) Bake for another 10-15 minutes or until heated through

Top with your favorite toppings, like green onions or bacon and serve immediately.

Hot wings and Steak Fries

My husband and I LOVE hot wings!  This recipe is one that we tried to copy cat from one of our favorite restaurants, Red Robin. We also love their steak fries with buzz sauce. (hot wing sauce) The bottle of franks red hot also has a similar recipe.  Here is our version

Hot Wings

2-3 lbs wings

3/4 cup (1 1/2 cubes) of butter melted slightly

3/4 cup Franks Red Hot (More if you want it really spicy)

a dash or two of salt

Bake or deep fry wings. I like to bake them and then crisp them up real good by frying them. Melt butter slightly and mix in with Franks Red Hot. Add salt.  In an air tight container combine wings and sauce and shake well to coat.  For best results allow them to sit for about an hour to soak in the sauces.  Serve with ranch. 

Tip: to really coat the wings nice and thick. Don't melt the butter all the way.  Soften it to just before melting point. Then add the Franks Red Hot

Tip: You want to dry out the meat as much as possible to allow it to soak up all of the flavor from the sauce.  Baking it well and then frying it until extra crispy work great.

Steak Fries with hot wing sauce

1 Bag of steak fries

seasoned salt

hot wing sauce

Fry steak fries with hot oil until crispy.  Sprinkle with season salt and dip in extra hot wing sauce. 

Cheesy Potatoes

This one is another recipe from my mother-in-law.  It is a definite favorite in my family. I don't know what it is about this dish, but it is one of those comfort foods that just hits the spot. It's another quick and easy one to make too. You can easily customize this dish to your tastes.  We like ours really cheesy, so we add tons of cheese. You can also add a variety of shredded cheeses. I like cheddar the best, but you can use  whatever you have on hand. We also like it crispy on the sides and top, so we leave it in the oven longer.  Mmmm my mouth is watering just thinking about it!

Cheesy Potatoes

1 Bag frozen hash browns
1 cube melted butter
2 to 4 tablespoons dehydrated onions
2-3 Cups shredded cheese ( I usually use cheddar)
2 small cans cream of chicken soup (I use one large can)
1 pint sour cream
1-2 more cups shredded cheese

In a large bowl, combine hash browns and melted butter.  Add cheese and onions.  Then stir in soup and sour cream. Mix well. Pour into a 9x13 pan and top with more cheese.  Bake in a pre-heated oven at 350 degrees for 30-45 minutes.