Cheesy Scalloped Potatoes

Scalloped potatoes seem to be a staple in a lot of people’s repertoire. Growing up, I really only thought that they came out of a box or premade from the store. And I can tell you I hated scalloped potatoes. They were horrible pieces of cardboard, sorry to the boxed brands out there. And the premade stuff from the store… yuck! I seriously hated scalloped potatoes. Until one day…

One day I went to a friends house. There for a while, we went to a friends house multiple times per week. And one night she made us dinner. She said she was making scalloped potatoes. Oh gosh, I rolled my eyes trying not to let her see my huge distaste for scalloped potatoes. Like the good dinner guest, I took a scoop and went and sat down. I planned on eating those scalloped potatoes first so that I could mask the taste with the rest of the food she made.

I took my first bite and literally had to pick my jaw up off the ground. Okay, okay so it was was figuratively, but still. I was just in wow at how good these things actually were. Who knew? Seriously? I had no idea. So I must admit, I went back for seconds. Hey, scalloped potatoes were actually good.

The other night when we were trying to decide what to eat, my mom suggested she’d buy the premade scalloped potatoes. YUCK! I said, please, let me take a stab at making them because those premade ones are crap. Yes, I said that to my mother. I’m sorry. But they are… So I sat out to make scalloped potatoes for the first time. Okay, they are extremely easy to make. Maybe not quite as fast as the warm up in the microwave 2 minute premade type, but oh so much better. The time difference doesn’t even compare to make me ever want to buy those pre-made potatoes again.

Here’s what I did.

Cheesy Scalloped Potatoes

Ingredients:

• 1/4-1/2 Onion, diced.
• 6-8 Yukon gold potatoes, sliced
• 2 tbsp Butter
• 2 tbsp Flour
• 1/2 cup Heavy cream
• 2 cups Milk
• 1-1/2 cup Cheddar cheese, shredded, divided
• salt and pepper to taste

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 350˚F. Lightly grease a 9×13 baking dish.
2. Melt the butter in a pan. Add onions and cook 3-5 minutes, or until translucent. Once the onions are cooked, add flour and cook with a whisk. Add 1/2 cup heavy cream, then add 2 cups milk. Allow mixture to thicken. Finally add 1 cup cheese to melt. salt and pepper to taste.
3. Place a layer of potatoes in the prepared dish. Add onion/cheese/milk mixture. Repeat layers. Top mixture with remaining cheese.
4. Place in the oven and bake for 30 minutes or until potatoes are thoroughly cooked. When pierced with a fork and they are easy to poke, you know they are cooked.
5. Pull out of oven, cool a couple minutes. Eat and enjoy!