Cheddar bacon scalloped potatoes in a rich and creamy sauce, topped with a buttery crumb topping is an easy to make crowd-pleaser for any occasion.
Recipe in partnership with NABISCO.
You know holiday side dishes are my jam. Light on the turkey, heavy on the taters. Not that I don’t like turkey, or ham, or goose (do people really eat goose at Christmas time or is that just an old saying??), it’s just that I really really love side dish type things. The salads and the veggies and the winter fruits and the potatoes. Triple helpings on the potatoes please!
My mother makes the best potatoes and they always show up in one of three ways. Divine potatoes (sadly also known around here as “funeral potatoes” which totally kills my potato appetite but, what can ya do…), mashed (skin-on, still a little chunky, and with evaporated milk), and scalloped. A lot like this dish I’m sharing with you today only I’ve added a few things that will take this classic holiday side dish and turn it into your favorite part of the meal.
My first twist is the sauce. These tender, scalloped potatoes are cooked in a rich and creamy white cheddar sauce. Before you ask, yes you can use yellow cheddar cheese, but I highly recommend going for white. There’s something about white cheddar that works wonders with bacon. Which brings me to my second twist, bacon!! You can either use freshly cooked and chopped bacon, or real bacon bits if you’re in a hurry. Bacon and cheese and potatoes…. that’s a heavenly combination right there.
The last thing that really sets these scalloped potatoes apart from the rest is the topping. You haven’t tasted a scalloped potato casserole at its finest until it’s been topped with a thick layer of crushed NABISCO PREMIUM Saltine Crackers and then drizzled in melted butter. Let’s just put it this way… my husband and I love love love potatoes. But when we devour a 6-8 serving size of potatoes between the two of us in just two days? That’s when you know that there is something special about these potatoes. I’m telling you, it’s that buttery Saltine Cracker topping. I’m not sure I can ever really be satisfied without it now that I’ve tasted this goodness. The good news is that this dish is a cinch to make so from now on at every holiday gathering, I’ll just be the one volunteering to bring the taters.
- 4-6 cups thinly sliced gold potatoes
- 3 cups half and half
- 2 teaspoons garlic
- 2½ teaspoons salt
- ½ teaspoon pepper
- 1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
- ¼ cup half and half + 3 T flour
- 2 cups shredded white cheddar cheese, divided
- 4 strips bacon, cooked til almost crispy and roughly chopped or ⅓ cup bacon bits
- 20 NABISCO PREMIUM Saltine Crackers, finely crushed
- 4 T butter, melted
- Combine the 3 cups half and half, garlic, salt, pepper, and Italian seasoning in a large pot and bring to a simmer. Add potatoes and stir to combine. Cover and cook for 10-15 minutes until potatoes are tender.
- Stir 3 tablespoons of flour into remaining ¼ cup half and half. Stir into pot along with 1 cup cheese. Cover and cook another 5 minutes or so until thickened and cheese is completely melted. Stir in bacon.
- Transfer potato mixture to a large baking dish. Sprinkle remaining cheese over the top, then sprinkle crushed Saltine crackers over the top of the cheese. Drizzle butter over cracker crumbs. Bake at 400 for 10-15 minutes until cracker topping is browned and sauce is bubbly. (You can broil for the last few minutes if you want your crackers more browned).
- Serve hot and top with cracked black pepper and fresh herbs if desired.
NABISCO® is celebrating its 115th anniversary with 115 Moments of Joy—and we want YOU to
join the party! Whatever the celebration, NABISCO has you covered with great tasting snacks and deliciously
fun-filled recipes. For more details about “115 Moments of Joy,” including how to enter without a purchase, visit
www.NABISCO115Moments.com for more details.
Text NABISCO for a chance to WIN $115,000! They’re giving away $1,150 daily too! Here’s how to enter: TEXT a picture* of yourself and any NABISCO product or NABISCO recipe to 59526. You can enter the promotion every day through 12/31/16.
*NO PURCHASE NECESSARY. Residents of 50 US and DC, 18 and older. Ends 12/31/16. Void where prohibited. Visit www.NABISCO.com for Official Rules including free entry. Msg. & data rates apply. Text STOP to end. Text HELP for info. If you enter via text, you will receive 1 text in response from automated system. Consent is not required to buy goods and services. To view the Sponsor’s Mobile Privacy Policy, http://www.mondelezinternational.com/privacy-policy.aspx. To view Administrator’s Mobile Terms and Conditions, http://www.helloworld.com/terms. Sponsor: Mondelēz Global LLC.
The post Cheddar Bacon Scalloped Potatoes appeared first on Creme De La Crumb.