Cheesy Garlicky Scalloped Potatoes Recipe

Lately my blog has been full of potatoes and cheese. I am not ashamed of that. I had to finish off the rest of the 10 lb bag of potatoes I bought and Jess said she was thinking of making scalloped potatoes, so of course I stole her idea and viola - Cheesy Garlicky Scalloped Potatoes were born.

Of course I didn't follow the recipe and used almond milk instead of cows, which always makes me nervous, but the garlic covered up any almondy taste that might've made it weird. I also used a Tex Mex cheese mix and parmesan because those are my favorite and i didn't have cheddar. The sauce got really thick and was almost gloopy. I don't really know why. I'm sure it wasn't supposed to be like that, but it baked up fine and tasted delicious. I made this the night ahead because, as per usual, I had a lot of free time on my hands. 

Cheesy Garlicky Scalloped Potatoes Recipes (here's the original recipe)
1/4 cup butter
4 tbsps flour
1 tsp kosher salt
1 tsp black pepper
3 garlic cloves
1 tsp parsley
1 1/2 cups almond milk
1/2 cup tex mex
1/2 cup parmesan
2 lbs potatoes (I used 10 small) peeled and thinly sliced
1 sweet white onion thinly sliced

1. Peel your potatoes and slice them thinly. Then do your onion. Layer half the potatoes in a SPRAYED 9x13 pan, then layer half the onions.
2. In a pot, melt your butter, then add flour, garlic, salt and pepper. Mix until smooth. 
3. Add milk in slowly, mixing continuously until all your milk is added. Bring to a boil and stir until thickened. Remove from heat and add cheese.
4. Pour half the cheese sauce over the potatoes and onions. Then do your second layer or potatoes and onions and top with the rest of the sauce.
5. Cover and bake at 350 for 50 minutes. Uncover and bake for 10-15 minutes longer. At this point add more cheese if you love cheese. 

PS  if you like this, you're probably going to love my Shepherd's Pie Recipe - read it here.

 

Homemade Potato Skins

Cheese, bacon, potato. What's not to love? Throw some green onions and a dollop of sour cream and you've got yourself a well rounded meal. Forget about the calories and just eat yourself happy!

I decided to make a double batch of potato skins because I had two dinner parties last weekend. Let me tell you, they got scarfed down in rapid succession. If I concentrate really hard I can still taste the cheesy bacony goodness.

I really don't even think this requires a recipe.. But here's a willy nilly instruction set...

Bake some russet potatoes and let them cool. Cut in half lengthwise and scoop out the middles, leaving about a 1/4 inch of potato. If you like them skinnier, scrape out more potato. Keep the skins in the fridge until you are ready to use them. If you want to make them ahead, pop them in the freezer in ziplock bags.

Preheat your oven to 400. Line a pan with tinfoil. Place the potatoes upside down, so that the skins are face up. Brush them with olive oil and sprinkle with coarse salt and pepper. Bake for about ten minutes until they are quite firm.

Take them out and flip them akin side down and sprinkle your favourite cheese in each one. Don't be skimpy, there is no such thing as too much cheese! FYI: I used a tex mex mix. Next sprinkle them with bacon. It's obviously best if you fry the bacon and crumble it up, but pre-made bacon bits will do the trick.

Put it all back in the oven for ten minutes or until the cheese is bubbly. Sprinkle them with chopped green onions and serve with sour cream or greek yogurt!