Monday, April 30, 2018

Funeral Potatoes



After a year-long hiatus, the Divas will be back on May 29th! Today I thought I'd share a peek at a recipe from THE DIVA COOKS UP A STORM.

All over the United States, it's expected that people will bring food to the bereaved after a death. In some communities, this falls to churches. I've heard there are even designated groups of ladies in some churches who swoop in with food and everything else that might be needed.

If you're from Utah or the Northwest, you probably know about funeral potatoes. They're virtually unheard of in the South, where proper ladies often keep something in the freezer ready at a moment's notice. You may call them by a different name. Apparently, these potatoes show up at all kinds of functions and events. In fact, I think they may become my go-to dish when I have to bring something to a pot luck.

It turns out that funeral potatoes are very popular in my family. In fact, I make them now fairly regularly, so we've started calling them Event Potatoes! They're super simple to throw together. And people in my family devour them!

Now that I have cooked them several times, I do have a few recommendations. Use frozen shredded potatoes. When I opened a bag of shredded potatoes that were mysteriously partly purple, and had everything else ready to go, I tossed the purple potatoes and shredded fresh potatoes. Fresh potatoes are a whole lot more work, they need to cook longer, and to be honest, they weren't nearly as tasty!

Don't forget to thaw the frozen shredded potatoes in the fridge overnight.

I understand that there's a big conflict about what should top the funeral potatoes. Everyone has a favorite. I have tried Parmesan cheese with Panko, to which we're very partial. I have also tried crushed potato chips and crushed Ritz crackers. By far, we prefer crushed barbecue flavor potato chips (I use Kettle Brand Country Style Barbecue). They add just the right flavor and crunch on top. Just crush them up and use instead of the Panko and Parmesan.


Funeral Potatoes

9x13 casserole dish

28-ounce bag of shredded hash brown potatoes, thawed
2 tablespoons butter
1 medium onion, chopped
3–4 cloves garlic, minced
16 ounces sour cream
10-ounce can cream of chicken soup
8 ounces sharp cheddar cheese, shredded
3/4 teaspoon Kosher salt
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
1/2 cup Panko breadcrumbs
1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese
4 tablespoons melted butter

Thaw shredded potatoes in refrigerator overnight.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. 

In a small skillet, melt the 2 tablespoons of butter over medium heat. Add the chopped onion and cook until translucent. Add minced garlic for 2 minutes, stirring with the onions. Remove from heat and set aside.

Pour the thawed shredded potatoes into a very large mixing bowl. Add the sour cream, cream of chicken soup, shredded cheddar cheese, salt, and pepper. Mix thoroughly.

Pour into a 9 x 13 casserole dish. Sprinkle the Panko breadcrumbs over top. Sprinkle the Parmesan cheese over top. Bake 30 minutes. Pour melted butter over the top. Return to oven and bake another 30 minutes.

Saute onion

Shred cheese.
Pour it all into a large bowl.

Mix it up!

Pour into a large casserole dish.

Mmm. Creamy and crunchy!


COMING MAY 29TH!

8 comments:

  1. I have had these many times, at funerals and just for meals. Glad there is a new Diva mystery!

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  2. So glad a new Diva mystery will be out soon. I think I might try the funeral potatoes at a big office breakfast I need to make. Can serve them with eggs.

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  3. I have never had funeral potatoes but would come across the name in articles and books. They do seem easy to prepare and I bet a serving would be good and comforting.

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  4. I’ve never had those. Growing up my Mom used to make casseroles with canned cream soups. I prefer to cook things from scratch

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  5. Such good news, I so enjoy the Diva mysteries.

    And this recipe. My BFF is 5'10" tall and I am 5'1" tall. One afternoon we were eating ice cream and as she got up to get another helping, she looked at me and said, "You know if you were taller, you could eat more." This recipe makes me want to grow about 4 inches.

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  6. Love these...if careful what you add, can make vegan I’ve been told....but I love them just the way they are. A friend puts crushed cornflakes on top....a lot like cracker Barrels hash brown casserole. Like Sam I M...I will eat them here or there, I will eat them anywhere...everywhere....yum!

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  7. This does sound crazy good.
    You mention cooking the onions and garlic. But when do you add them to the mix? Along with the potato mix I assume?

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  8. I never heard about these until I started reading cozies, lol. Now I have a recipe. Will have to try these for sure. Congrats on the new book coming out!

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