Creamy Scalloped Potatoes

Some things just go together~cheese and crackers, peanut butter and jelly, strawberries and cream, and biscuits and gravy to name a few. When I was planning our menu for the week and chose ham for one of the meals, I knew that scalloped potatoes had to join our Monday meal too.

When I was a little girl, scalloped potatoes always went with ham. Of course, we didn't have ham often, but when we did, it was the creamy potato casserole that we were anticipating, not the pig.

Probably because Charlotte's Web was such an integral part of our growing up years.

The thing I remember most about my mom's scalloped potatoes was the cream of mushroom soup that got dumped over the whole dish. The funny thing about aging is that sometimes you gain wisdom during the  growing process.

Sometimes.

As an adult, I now know that store-bought cream of mushroom soup is loaded with garbage that I don't want. Remember, MSG is not an ingredient, it's a toxin. And don't even get me started on the other "ingredients". If I can't say them, I can't eat them. Period. (I posted a homemade Cream of Mushroom soup here.)

My mission, if I chose to accept it, was to come up with an equally delicious, creamy potato dish, reminiscent of the scalloped spuds of my youth.

I like a good challenge almost as much as I like a good potato dish. ☺

Creamy Scalloped Potatoes

~The Players~

4 lbs. organic potatoes (yellow, red, purple, russet~your choice)

1 (8 oz.) cream cheese, softened

1 cup Greek, plain yogurt or sour cream

1 cup whole milk

1 cup Swiss cheese, grated

1/2-3/4 cup Parmesan cheese, grated

2 t. dried tarragon

1 Tb. dried parsley

1/2 t. onion powder

1 t. (or more to taste) sea salt

ground pepper

Using the slicer attachment on a food processor or mixer, slice the washed (and peeled if desired) potatoes. Put the sliced potatoes into a large stainless or plastic bowl and cover with cold water.

Let potatoes soak for 1/2 hour to remove excess starch. Drain in a colander.

Grease a 13x9" baking dish and lay half of the potatoes in the dish. 

In a mixer, beat the cream cheese and yogurt/sour cream together until smooth. Add the milk and mix well; scrape the bowl as needed. Add the cheeses and spices.

Pour half the cheese mixture over the potatoes. Add the remaining potatoes and cover with the rest of the cheese sauce. Sprinkle with paprika.

Place tin foil over casserole and bake in a preheated 375F. oven for 45 minutes. Remove foil and bake 15 minutes more, or until potatoes are soft.  

Serve immediately.

Maybe with a nice ham?

Enjoy!