I am a member of the Collective Bias® Social Fabric® Community. This Cheesy Potato Casserole with #OreIdaHashbrown has been compensated as part of a social shopper amplification for #CollectiveBias and its advertiser.
Those who are regular readers on my blog and those who follow me on Instagram know that I’ve been a bit, well, whiny here lately regarding my grocery bill. I had never dreamed when our family doubled in size a year ago that I would already be making double portions of every meal. Last night we polished off two boxes of shells and cheese, a can of green beans, and a rotisserie chicken with no left overs in sight. An hour later the boys all had a yogurt. Thirty minutes after that they were at their dad’s knees begging like puppies for a taste of his smoothie. Feeding a big family is tough. But could you imagine being responsible for feeding TEN children and teenagers every day and night? I’ve been blessed to know one community hero for several years now who does exactly that. I recently took the opportunity to hopefully be a blessing to her by giving her a night off of cooking dinner and providing her family a Cheesy Potato Casserole with delicious Ore-Ida Shredded Hash Brown Potatoes.
I met Ms. Penny close to ten years ago now. At that time, she was a foster parent with two children in her care. But she had love for these children that desired to give them a permanent home. So she adopted the two small boys that I have been thrilled to watch grow up to turn into awesome teenagers. Yet Ms. Penny’s heart for children didn’t stop there. Throughout the years, I’ve witnessed many foster children come through her home, and I saw her strength when her husband passed away. Her resilience is amazing, and through it all her big heart for children never changed. She is a true community hero with a deep love for those without a home. Ms. Penny now has three adopted children, three foster children who have been in her home for several years, three children whom she has unofficially adopted who stay in her home, and a grandchild whom she keeps regularly. And since I’m something akin to a math wizard, I know that tallies up to TEN children and teens who eat under her roof multiple times a day. Wow!
The big meals that I’ve been cooking lately inspired me to think about her. Surely for one night I could ease her burden by providing a home cooked meal for her family. A meal to feed eleven calls for one specific dish- Cheesy Potato Casserole made with Ore-Ida Shredded Hash Brown Potatoes. I doubled the dish to guarantee that there would be enough for the entire crew (and maybe enough for left overs!). This hearty dish has everything growing kids love- cheese and potatoes! Recipe is courtesy of Ore-Ida.
Ingredients {for a double portion}:
- 2 (10.5 oz.) cans of condensed cream of chicken soup
- 4 Cups Sour cream, divided
- 2 Teaspoon Salt
- 1/2 Teaspoon Ground black pepper
- 4 Cups Shredded cheddar cheese, divided
- 2/3 Cup Sliced green onions, divided
- 2 Packages (30 oz.) Ore-Ida® Shredded Hash Brown Potatoes
- 4 Cups Crushed corn flake cereal, divided
- 1/2 Cup Butter, melted and divided
- If taking the casseroles to a large group or organization, I recommend using disposable aluminum 13×9 baking pans.
Begin by measuring out and dividing all the ingredients. When making a double or triple batch of a dish, I get easily confused. If I begin organized, surely I’ll stay organized– right?
Preheat oven to 350°F. Coat the 13×9 baking dishes with nonstick cooking spray. Take two large bowls, and whisk together 1 can soup soup, 2 cups sour cream, 1 Teaspoon salt and 1/4 Teaspoon pepper in each bowl.
Stir in 2 cups cheese, 1/3 cup onion, and 1 package hash browns in each bowl until well mixed.
Spoon the contents of each bowl evenly into two baking dishes.
Mix together 2 cups cereal and 1/4 cup butter in a medium sized bowl, then repeat in a separate medium sized bowl.
Sprinkle each bowl evenly on top of the two hash brown mixtures.
If using the aluminum baking dishes, place each dish on top of a cookie sheet before placing it into the oven. This is a hearty dish, and the cookie sheet will help to support the disposable dishes.
Bake uncovered for 45 to 50 minutes, or until hot and bubbly. Allow to rest for about 10-15 minutes before covering with aluminum foil for delivery.
I also tossed together a quick salad as a side for the meal. The teenagers in the home are a big fan of my Chocolate Eclair Pudding, so I included that as a special treat for them.
My hubby and I loaded our meal in the car and set out for a special delivery. The hubby was the designated driver while I strapped the food in the car seat. He makes a pretty good looking delivery driver. Don’t you think so? I’d deliver food with him anywhere. Oh, wait, I’m getting totally off track here. Pardon me.
We arrived at the house to a hungry crew! My daughter sneaked in the photo, too.
We didn’t stay for dinner. We only left the food and visited for a few minutes. I was pleased to get some awesome text messages after we left, though! I could try to use words to express how thankful the family was and how much they enjoyed the meal, but I think these picture messages that my husband and I received speak for themselves!
Want to surprise a community hero or charity with a home cooked dish large enough to feed a crowd? This Hash Brown Recipe is sure to please! Purchase the Ore-Ida Shredded Hash Brown Potatoes from Walmart with the coupon from their website to save a little jingle in your pocket, too!
Oh, Melanie, what a wonderful thing to do! I can’t imagine feeding that many people every day!! I’m so glad you were able to find such a practical way to bless that family!
I can’t imagine it either, Amy! Thank you for your sweet comment!
What a wonderful way to give back and be a blessing! Love this!
Thank you Kristy!
This looks super yummy! I am definitely adding this to my list 🙂
Let me know if you try it. I would love to hear about your experience with this dish!
Cheese plus potatoes- YES PLEASE!!!!!
And the large portions mean left overs for another meal! Excellent, right?!?
Oh my goodness this post made me tear up – what a sweet thing for you to do and what an angel that Ms. Penny is!! Wow. Mind. Blown. This looks delicious and I am SO using this recipe the next time I need to feed a crowd. Pinned!
Thanks, Claire! This is an excellent crowd-pleaser recipe and is great to surprise someone who needs it!
I absolutely LOVE a good hashbrown casserole but I’ve never heard of putting cereal on top! I’ll have to try it!
Danielle at Framed Frosting
That is a lot of mouths to feed! I’m sure she was extremely thankful and touched by your act of kindness. #client
What a group of wonderful people (yourself included!) The generosity and big hearts of ladies like you always make me smile- and the recipe looks fabulous as well!
Growing up in a family of 9 I know all to well how it was to feed a big family and the 3 boys ate twice to three times as much as us 6 girls. This sounds like a wonderful meal to feed a big group.
Wow- you do know all about it!
What a great story. I can only imagine e how appreciative that family was. Totally pinning thus recipe!
What a great story, Melanie! And yes, 10 kids, not 9. I loved those photo messages too!
Thanks, ChiWei! And there may even be more than that in this picture- my daughter sneaked in it, too!
What a touching story! That lady is a saint . I can hardly take care of my own three children, let alone other people’s. I’m just so touched. And kudos to you for feeding them all with that delicious casserole and extras. You are a kind friend and they are blessed to have you in their lives. Bonus: Hurray for easy to make, enormous, delicious casseroles. #client
Thanks, Summer. I always say that giving back sometimes gives more to the giver than to the receiver. I know it did in this case!
I love this recipe and have made a similar version of this for years. Always a big hit and soooo easy! To really take this over the top, add a dry packet of Uncle Dan’s Ranch dressing mix. Thanks Melanie!
I need to make cheesy potatoes for a crowd of about 30+ people. Do you think this recipe would make enough?
Love this recipe but haven’t used the shredded potatoes before, will do that next time! I am on the Bereavement Committee at church and will for sure use this recipe. Also, I looked for the chocolate eclair recipe but couldn’t find it, would love to have this one also to feed a lot of folks. Bless you for helping feed an army of kids and I have to agree, that is a pretty cute “co-food delivery guy”! Any guy that goes that extra mile to help others is a mighty good man in my book! Got one of those myself and we have been cooking and delivering food when needed for 38 years, yep, he’s a keeper too! Thanks so much and if you could steer me in the right direction of the pudding it would be most appreciated!
I’ ve always loved this dish. A simple trick my family does is switching the hashbrowns for Potatoes O’Brien. The Potatoes O’Brien already has onions and peppers in it so you can cut out the extra step of buying and chopping green onions.
That’s a good tip! Thank you!