Mom’s Twice Baked Potato Casserole Recipe

I finally have mom’s recipe for her twice-baked potato casserole.

I’ve been trying my hardest to get some of my favorite family recipes written down. I finally have a few of my mom’s recipes written down (manicotti, pink & white anise cake, cream of tomato soup, egg strata, my favorite chocolate chip cookies), and Aunt Lisa’s artichoke recipe. Actually, I should probably make a list of all the recipes I need so I can start crossing them off. But I’m so glad I now have this twice-baked potato casserole recipe to add to the list.

These are my favorite potatoes. They’re super fluffy. You don’t need to deal with potato skins. You put cheese inside of them. The top gets a little bit crispy when you cook it. What’s not to love?

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The first thing I did was buy a bunch of russet potatoes. Why? Because they’re large. There was one holiday when I was younger that I had to peel the potatoes for the twice-baked potatoes but EVERY SINGLE POTATO in the entire five pound bag was SMALL. My hand was so cramped at the end of that. Now, I only buy large potatoes. #firstworldproblems

The recipe below is for a 9″ x 13″ twice-baked potato casserole, but I went ahead and made an 8″ x 8″ one for this dinner party. I probably just should have gone ahead and made the 9″ x 13″ one though because (a) you can never have too many mashed potatoes, and (b) it’s kind of wasteful to use only 1.5 eggs.

Anyway, first you peel and cube the potatoes. Then you boil them to soften them, which is about 10 to 15 minutes. And prepare to put them all in a kitchen aid mixer.

You end up beating them in your kitchen aid mixer for +10 minutes. Once you gain any traction and the potatoes are no longer cube-like, you can add in all the additional tasty ingredients: salt, grated cheese, butter, milk, and eggs. For specific details on adding those ingredients, see the recipe below.

This part entertained me so much. The potatoes pretty much steam the entire time you’re doing this because they just came out of a boiling pot of water. This also means that you don’t need to worry about the butter melting when you put it in the bowl, if you wanted to, you could even take it straight out of the freezer (just cut it into small chunks before putting it in). Please ignore the hot mess of a kitchen table in this photograph. (Real life.)

You beat the potatoes for +10 minutes, or until they become creamy. They’re supposed to be pretty creamy, so feel free to add more milk if they’re not creamy enough. (Also feel free to add more salt or grated cheese.)

Butter the dish, and place half of the potato mixture in. Layer American cheese in the middle. Then add the remainder of the potato mixture on top. Then sprinkle some paprika and slip pats of butter into the top layer of potatoes.

One of the best parts of this side dish is that you can make it ahead of time and put it in the refrigerator the night before. You’ll need to take it out of the fridge an hour before you throw it in the oven to bring it back to room temperature, but it will save you some time the day of the party. And hold off on putting the paprika on until right before you bake.

Bake for 30-45 minutes and you’ll have a delicious twice-baked potato casserole. The hard part is now waiting for it to cool down enough that the cheese won’t burn your mouth. Good luck!

I’m so glad that I finally have this recipe written down. I’m going to have to start to add it to my dinner party usuals. It’s so easy, so filling, and who doesn’t love mashed potatoes?

Mom’s Twice Baked Potato Casserole

Ingredients

• 5 lb. baking potatoes peeled and cut into cubes

• 2 teaspoons salt

• 4 tablespoons grated cheese

• 3 eggs

• 1/2 cup milk

• 1-1/2 sticks of butter, plus extra for the pan and top

• 12-15 slices american cheese

• Paprika

Instructions

1. Peel and cube the potatoes. Boil them until soft. Then drain them.

2. Put the potatoes in the mixer and beat slowly at first, then increase the speed.

3. Add salt, grated cheese, and 1-1/2 sticks of butter and continue beating.

4. Add milk and then slowly add the eggs, one at a time. (At this point, the potatoes should have cooled off enough that they will not cook the eggs immediately.)

5. Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.

6. Beat for an additional 10+ minutes, until the mixture is creamy. Add additional milk, salt, and grated cheese as necessary, to taste.

7. Butter a 9" x 13" casserole dish.

8. Add half of the potato mixture to the pan.

9. Add a layer of american cheese on top of the potatoes.

10. Add the remaining potatoes to the dish.

11. Sprinkle the top with paprika and add butter pats across the top of the casserole.

12. Bake at 350 degrees Fahrenheit for 30 to 45 minutes, or until golden on top and heated through.

13. Let cool slightly before eating so the cheese doesn't burn your mouth.

14. The casserole can be completed one day ahead and refrigerated until needed. Take it out of the refrigerator at least one hour before baking.