We were hungry and half done before I got the camera out.
I forget what inspired the Fall Bake recipe. (We sometimes call it Dry Soup, but that’s not really as appetizing . . . and doesn’t help me think of where the idea came from). It starts with roasted potatoes, and all the sizing ends up relative to how many folks you have coming for dinner. In this case, I had five people, and about one small bowl left:
10 largish Yukon potatoes, diced. (You can also use red or white, it’s the Russets that end up a little weird . . . too french-fry like and dry for this recipe).
2 medium onions, diced
5 slices of thick cut bacon, crisped and chopped (I often use “ends and pieces” instead — it’s a condiment in this dish)
1 bag of corn, heated
1 bag of green beans, heated
1-2 cups of grated sharp cheddar (I use Tillamook’s aged white)
parsley for garnish.
Dice the potatoes and onions, shake with a generous splash of olive oil (until coated–I stretch a piece of plastic wrap over my pyrex bowl to perform this move. Spread evenly in one layer on a baking sheet (I do it on parchment; foil or silpat would probably work fine, too), and bake in a 400F oven for about an hour.
Heat corn and beans. (In my first forays into this dish, I blobbed a little pat of butter on the corn, but it’s not necessary, unless you’re really craving the oil).
In a large bowl (I use a pasta bowl), shake the blazing hot potatoes in, sprinkle with the cheese (which will melt almost instantly), layer with the corn, beans, and bacon. Sprinkle with finely chopped parsley and serve.
You could also add: sautee’d celery and carrots, roasted cauliflower, roasted red peppers.
Large Group Note:
We made this for the youth group on 1/28/09, for approximately 33 teenagers. We used 15 pounds of red potatoes, 4 onions, 1 pound of bacon, 5 (16 oz) bags of corn, 5 (16oz) bags of green beans, and an entire baby loaf of Tillamook Vintage aged white cheddar. We made the mistake of using aluminum foil to line the trays, and had sticking problems (use parchment, and plenty of olive oil).
There were approximately 7 servings left over.