I won’t kid myself- I know I cannot replace your own family tradition of mashed potatoes at Thanksgiving. However, I wanted to present another option for a comforting potato dish (inspired by a casserole by Barb Templin of Norwood MN in Taste of Home) for perhaps another winter day. This is an easy to whip up on a blustery day casserole (on the day I made this I was red cheeked and sniffly after walking through 30-50 MPH winds), and a perfect dish for a holiday potluck. It’s also vegetarian. Thus, this recipe for Chive and Onion Cheesy Hash Brown Potatoes.

I was inspired when I saw the original recipe’s use of chive and onion cream cheese and cream that basically instead of topping a potato with sour cream and chives like I often like, this is all built in already.

The major modification I made to the recipe is that instead of dried minced onion, I used shallots that I minced and sauteed beforehand, and also instead of the Swiss cheese that was called for I used shredded Parmesan. The recipe makes 12 servings supposedly (each serving is 3/4 cup), but who only eats 3/4 cup of potatoes?

Ingredients:

• 1/4 cup of chopped shallots (or you can use onion,  or 2 tablespoons of dried minced onion, but I went with fresh shallots because that’s what I had on hand)
• 4 tablespoons of butter, divided: you will use 2 tablespoon with the shallots and the rest later with the potato dish
• 1 cup of heavy whipping cream. (the original recipe called for 1 1/2 cup of half and half, so you could also use that)
• 1 single 8 ounce container of chive and onion cream cheese
• 1 teaspoon of salt
• 1 teaspoon of freshly ground pepper
• 2 packages each of 20 ounce refrigerated shredded hash brown potatoes
• 2 cups of shredded cheese. The original called for Swiss, but I used Parmesan
• 1/4 cup of minced fresh chives

Directions:

• In a large pot or dutch oven, I used 1/2 cup of diced shallots and sauteed it in probably 2 tablespoon of butter over medium heat until the shallots started to become translucent..
• Next, preheat your oven to 375 degrees F. As the oven is heating, add to that pot with the sauteed shallots or onions the 8 ounce container of chive and onion cream cheese, salt, pepper together in a large pot over medium heat. Stir until the cream cheese has melted and incorporated into a gravy like sauce. Add the 1 cup of heavy whipping cream and stir until blend. 
   
• Next, add in the shredded hash brown potatoes. Stir until all the potatoes and sauce are well distributed.
  
  
• In a greased 13 x 9 ” baking dish, layer a third of the hash brown mixture. Then add a layer of your shredded cheese, using 2/3 cup Swiss or Parmesan cheese per layer, and sprinkle with 1 tablespoon of the minced fresh chives. Repeat layers of potato / cheese /chives – you should still have a little bit of chives left at the end for topping after baking. At the very end, top with your two tablespoons of butter by turning the two tablespoons into lots of little dots.
  
  
• Bake, covered, at 375 degrees F for 35 minutes. Then uncover the baking dish and continue baking for 10-20 minutes longer or until edges begin to brown and potatoes are heated through. Let stand 10 minutes before serving. Sprinkle with remaining chives.
  

The casserole is pretty hearty and comforting, and freezes well so you can prepare well beforehand.

It’s also ok to admit you totally want the crispy edge pieces!

And, how convenient that I can just grab some ingredients that are already prepped (such as the cream cheese, the shredded hash browns) and just have to combine it in a pot and in a baking dish. You can make it easier by even using dried seasonings from the cabinet if you don’t want to use fresh onions or shallots) to easily put this together and into the oven so you can work on the main entree.

What main dish do you think you would pair this with?