Baked Potato and Veggie Casserole

I made this last night, tweaking (of course!) from another recipe I found somewhere that wasn't quite what I wanted.  The finished product was good and worth recommending.  This is a hearty vegetarian casserole that would work great for potlucks as well as at home.

Ingredients:

5 pounds of organic potatoes:  You can use russet or thin-skinned varieties like I did

approximately 3-4 cups of veggies, such as
--cubed or shredded zucchini
--diced carrots
--corn (non-GMO only)
--peas

a half-cup (or more) diced onion

a half-cup thinly sliced celery

2 teaspoons minced garlic

1 1/2 cups either plain yogurt, Greek yogurt, or sour cream

half cup organic milk

1 cup Parmesan cheese

8 ounces shredded sharp cheddar cheese

1.5 teaspoons ground mustard

1.5 teaspoons garlic powder

half teaspoon onion powder

2 dashes cayenne pepper

1.5 teaspoon sea salt

1 teaspoon course ground pepper


Method:

Scrub and bake the potatoes.  Generally 350-400 degrees for an hour will get the job done.  Don't forget to poke each one with a fork or knife so they don't explode all over the inside of your oven!

After baking, let the potatoes cool so that you don't burn your little fingers while you make this yummy dinner!

After taters are cooled, dice them up into smallish chunks, maybe around 3/4 of an inch.  Think of potato salad sized chunks.  Think of a forkful of casserole, and know what size makes sense for eating with ease.  :)

In a large (I mean it) mixing bowl combine the diced potatoes and all the veggies.

In a separate, smaller mixing bowl combine the yogurt/sour cream, milk, cheese, and all the spices and seasonings.  I will say that if you're aiming for something lower in calories, you could go halfsies on this sauce.  However, it will not be as creamy and wonderful and you will probably wish it was!

Mix it up good and then pour it over the potatoes and veggies and combine it til it looks beautiful.  Like this:

Get a 9x13 pan and oil it up nicely.  Pour in the casserole goodness and bake it at 350 degrees for about an hour.  When it's done it'll be nicely browned around the edges. Looks something like this:

Yum!