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Bacon and Cheddar cheese baked into creamy red skinned mashed potatoes.
I’m sharing this now because Thanksgiving is next week but you can totally make this anytime of year. I mean who doesn’t love loaded mashed potatoes? I could probably eat loaded mashed potatoes every week, not that we do haha but I could. ?
There is just something amazingly comforting about mashed potatoes packed full of crispy bacon, cream and shredded cheese. Right now we’re falling into ”comfort food weather” and I’m ridiculously excited
Don’t get me wrong, I actually loved Summer this year which is odd for me. I normally don’t like summer. I mean I like summer because my birthday is smack dab in the middle of summer but let me tell ya something, body image and self confidence make summer a rough awful time for some people (ME!)
But this past year I embraced myself, it was hard but I did my best to push my self confidence up and my self doubt down and I enjoyed the warm breeze and sandy beaches without care….ok with little care. ?
But Fall is here now and I’m smitten with the leaves and cooler temperatures, mainly because I can break out the hoodies. I would totally live in hoodies if I could; hoodies and yoga pants for life y’all!
Since it’s Fall (and almost winter) I’m going to embrace the cold and curl up with my hoodie, yoga pants and loaded mashed potatoes.
In the past I’ve blogged about how much I wanted to relax during the winter, curl up on the couch and just enjoy life, do you remember? I’ve had such a hard time over the past 7 or so years with just relaxing. Every winter I would imagine cold evenings wrapped up in a fleece blanket on the couch with a good book and a large mug of hot coco but I couldn’t ever get myself relaxed enough to enjoy it. I would try to sit down with a book and get 2 pages in and have to get up and move around.
But things are-a-changin’….it’s the new apartment I tell ya! I’m so happy here. We may not be in Wilmington yet but this apartment is what I needed. I never thought that I’d be an apartment kinda girl but I think I was made for apartment living. Something about this place calms my nerves, I’ve been sleeping better, I love being in the kitchen here and I am 100% able to just relax!
You have no idea how amazing this is for me. This is the first time in the past 6 years that I’ve just been happy with where I’m at. I mean I was happy at the last house we lived at but now that I’m here I realize that we weren’t totally happy there.
For the first time in 6 years I can cuddle on my couch with a mug of hot chocolate in front of our fireplace
and just be in the moment. I mean I’m still an over thinker and I’m always “planning for the future”, but I’m actually just enjoying life. It’s wonderful. <3
LOADED MASHED POTATO CASSEROLE
Loaded Mashed Potato Casserole
Loaded Mashed Potato Casserole
- Prep Time: 15m
- Cook Time: 45m
- Total Time: 1h
- Yield: 9x13 Casserole dish
- Category: Side DIsh
Ingredients
- 4 pounds red skinned potatoes
- 1/2 cup milk
- 2 teaspoons seasoning salt
- 1 teaspoon pepper
- 1 tablespoon garlic powder
- 1 stick of butter (1/2 cup) softened and cut into chunks
- 8 ounces cream cheese, room temperature & cut into pieces
- 4 cups shredded cheddar cheese
- 1/2 pound bacon
- 1/4 cup heavy cream
Instructions
- Pre-heat oven to 350F.Chop the red skinned potatoes into cubes and toss them into a large pot of water. Bring the pot of water to a boil and cook for about 15-20 minutes or until the potatoes are tender.
- While the potatoes are cooking, cook the bacon. Cook it on the stove top or in the oven until crisp. Once the bacon is cooked, drain it, set it aside to cool and then chop it into pieces.
- Once the potatoes are tender drain them and add them back to the pot. Add in the cream cheese and butter. Mash the potatoes, cream cheese and butter together. Mash until creamy and then add in the garlic powder, pepper and seasoning salt.
- Pour in the milk and cream. Stir together until well combined. Taste and season if needed.
- Add in 3 cups of the cheese and almost all of the bacon and stir together.
- Pour into a 9x13 baking dish. Sprinkle the top with the rest of the cheese and bacon.
- Bake at 350F for 30 minutes.
OHEMGEEEE these potatoes look INSANE-sooo good!
Could I could this in a skillet?
Do you mean instead of the casserole dish? If it is an oven proof skillet it can cook in the oven. It would need to be a very large skillet. You could always skip the oven part.
Can this be frozen to make ahead for the holidays?
I’m sure it can be but I’ve never frozen it.