Baked potato casserole
This is another Southern-style dish my grandmother used to cook us all of the time. It’s a little like a twice baked potato with the fixins. It’s a delicious side dish. Try it with some Bar-B-Q chicken.
Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Serves 6 sides.
Five medium potatoes, cubed
Bacon, six slices chopped
One small onion, chopped
One large broccoli crown, chopped
1 1/2 cups heavy cream
10 or so ounces of shredded cheddar cheese
Cube five medium potatoes. Par-boil them. Be sure not to overcook them, you are going to be baking them at a later point.
Sauté or render about 6 slices of chopped bacon. Save the bacon grease for the onions and broccoli.
In the same pan you rendered the bacon add your chopped broccoli and onion. Add the broccoli first, it will take more time than the onions. Feel free to add some garlic, salt and pepper.
Cheese sauce
Warm the heavy cream. Slowly add the cheddar cheese to the warm cream. Whisk until the cheese has melted and the sauce is smooth. Reduce (while whisking) until the sauce is thick. Then remove from the heat.
In a baking dish, layer half of the potatoes in the bottom.
Add a layer of the cheese sauce.
Next add the broccoli and onions
Using half of the bacon, make another layer
Add another layer of the cheese sauce and the remaining potatoes.
Top with the remaining bacon and some shredded cheddar cheese and bake for about 25 minutes or until the top is golden brown.
