Loaded Mashed Potato Casserole

At a glance

What stands out: Mashed potatoes are great on their own but just wait until you try this loaded mashed potato casserole with lots of cheddar cheese, bacon, and green onions. This casserole turns ordinary mashed potatoes into an extraordinarily rich side or main dish.

How long it takes: 20 minutes to prep, 50 minutes in the oven
Equipment you’ll need: large bowl, cheese grater, large baking dish
Servings: 10

Mashed Potatoes Plus!

Loaded mashed potato casserole may be the ultimate comfort food. Creamy whipped potatoes are loaded with some of a standby things in life: smoky bacon, sharp cheddar cheese, tangy sour cream, and green onions.

We love twice baked potatoes. The problem is they are a hassle to make: bake the potatoes, try to scoop out the insides while leaving a presentable shell, mash them, and then refill the potato skin you just emptied out. Then it’s back in the oven for awhile before you can actually serve them.

This from-scratch casserole incorporates all the things you love about twice baked potatoes, sans the peelings and all the hassle.

If you love loaded mashed potato casserole, be sure to try loaded baked potatoes or straightforward potato skins, too!

Loaded Mashed Potato Casserole

A “secret” ingredient. Most of the recipes for mashed potato casserole include sour cream but we also add one “secret” ingredient that we think makes a difference: cream cheese. Our mom always made a good mashed potato casserole for Thanksgiving dinner. It was creamy, light, and reliable. We asked her about the recipe and found that she included cream cheese. You won’t notice the cream cheese but it ensures that the texture and flavor of the potato casserole will be memorable.

Reliable for get-togethers! This recipe is a family favorite and it’s always welcome at potlucks. The casserole is large and serves at least ten as a side dish, so it’s reliable for entertaining. Another bonus is that it can be made ahead and it never tastes like leftover mashed potatoes.

You’re going to love this recipe!

What goes in

• Mashed Potatoes: This recipe calls for six cups of mashed potatoes. You’ll need about 3 pounds of russet potatoes, cooked and mashed with milk and butter. Make Instant Pot mashed potatoes or crockpot mashed potatoes; they’re straightforward and no fuss. This recipe is a great way to use leftover mashed potatoes, too.
• Cream Cheese: Either full fat or reduced fat cream cheese will work. Make sure you take it out of the refrigerator an hour or two ahead of time to soften.
• Sour Cream: Again, either regular or reduced fat sour cream is fine. If you prefer to make your casserole without sour cream, substitute full fat plain Greek yogurt.
• Eggs: A couple of eggs help bind the casserole and give it richness.
• Shredded Cheddar Cheese: For best results, buy a block of cheese and shred it yourself. Pre-shredded cheese has additives to prevent clumping but the additives also affect the way the cheese melts.
• Bacon: The recipe calls for a half cup of crumbled cooked bacon. You can certainly add more if you like (or omit it).
• Green Onions, Garlic Powder, Black Pepper: Otherwise known as scallions, green onion have a mild onion flavor. The casserole is also seasoned with garlic powder and ground black pepper. For something different, try a few cloves of roasted garlic.

How it comes together

Mashed potatoes: To begin with, you’ll need mashed potatoes. You can use leftover potatoes, make the potatoes a day or two in advance, purchase mashed potatoes, or make them right now.

Cooked bacon: You’ll also need cooked bacon. We like to cook a whole package of bacon at once. It can be stored in the refrigerator or freezer and it’s all ready to use for recipes like this one. Have you tried baked bacon? It’s a straightforward way to cook a whole pound of bacon. Air fryer bacon is also reliable for this recipe if you don’t want to cook an entire pound of bacon.

Once you have these two ingredients prepped, this casserole is simple. Just mix everything together and bake it.

Preheat the oven. Preheat your oven and grease a 9 x 13-inch baking dish with a light misting of nonstick spray.

Combine. In a large mixing bowl, combine the potatoes, softened cream cheese, sour cream, beaten eggs, and seasoning.

Use an electric mixer to blend everything together. It should be smooth and creamy.

Add the goodies. Fold in the bacon pieces, most of the shredded cheese (save some for the top), and the chopped green onions.

Put into baking dish. Transfer the mixture to the prepared pan and smooth the top.

Top with cheese and bake. Sprinkle on the remaining cheese. Put the dish into the oven and bake the casserole until it’s hot and lightly browned. It will take about 50 minutes.

Serve. When you’re ready to serve the mashed potato casserole, garnish it with any extra toppings you want to add.

Ways to serve it

For a main course: Mashed potato casserole is hearty enough to stand alone as a main course. We like to serve it with a crisp green salad, like this classic house salad.

As a side dish: This casserole also goes with any type of meat main course. Serve it with chicken: air fryer chicken breasts or grilled marinated chicken. Try with crispy breaded pork chops, spice rubbed pork tenderloin, or from-scratch classic meatloaf.

For a get-together: If you’re serving a crowd, make a big batch of meatballs or slow cooker ribs to go along with loaded mashed potato casserole.

Ways to change it

• Make a smaller batch. If you happen to have some leftover mashed potatoes but not 6 cups, this recipe is a good way to repurpose those leftovers. Simply cut this recipe in half and use a smaller baking dish.
• Try a vegetarian version. Omit the bacon or use a plant-based bacon instead. If you want to add smoky flavor without bacon, sprinkle smoked paprika on top of the casserole before baking or mix it into the potatoes.
• Make a different vegetable casserole. Try our from-scratch green bean casserole (it has bacon and cheese, too!). A lot of people love this cheesy Brussels sprouts au gratin hot dish or scalloped sweet potatoes with bacon and Gruyère.

Make-Ahead Ideas

Get a head start. We have a couple of make-ahead tips to expedite the casserole-making process. The next time you make mashed potatoes, make a double batch and set aside some to use for this casserole. You can freeze them if you like. Bake a pound of bacon and store it in the fridge or freezer, to use later for recipes or for breakfast.

Make it a day ahead. Prep the casserole a day ahead but don’t bake it. Cover and refrigerate. When you’re ready to bake the casserole, take it out of the fridge while the oven preheats. Once it’s preheated, bake the casserole as directed. Add five to ten minutes to the baking time since the casserole is chilled.

One for now and one for later. Another alternative is to divide the casserole into two equal portions and freeze one to bake later. It will keep for a couple of months. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator before baking.

Keeping leftovers

Refrigerate/Freeze: Leftover mashed potato casserole can be refrigerated for four days or frozen for a couple of months. Cool, wrap tightly, and label before freezing.

Reheat: To reheat, gently warm up individual portions in the microwave until heated. Larger amounts can be heated in the oven at 350℉. Cover the dish with foil to prevent the potatoes from drying out.

Leftover Love

If you have a couple cups of potato casserole leftover, make potato patties. Mix in a half cup flour, form into patties and fry in butter or oil until golden brown. No additional seasonings or cheese need to be added because it’s all in there already.

Free Meal Plan

Interested in a weekly meal plan that includes this recipe? Take a look at our Meal Plan #7. You’ll find a wholesome recipe for each weekday plus a categorized grocery list. Let us do the planning for you this week!

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• Yield: 12
• Prep: 20 minutes
• Cook: 50 minutes
• Total: 1 hour 10 minutes

Ingredients

• 6 cups prepared mashed potatoes (about 3 pounds russet potatoes made with 1 cup milk, 2 tablespoons butter, ¾ teaspoon salt)
• 2 large eggs, lightly beaten
• 8 ounces cream cheese, softened
• ½ cup sour cream
• ½ teaspoon garlic powder
• ¼ teaspoon ground black pepper
• 1 ½ cups shredded cheddar cheese, divided
• ½ cup crumbled cooked bacon ( 5 strips center cut bacon)
• ½ cup chopped green onions (or chives)

Method

1. Preheat oven to 350℉. Prepare large baking dish (9 x 13 inches) by spraying with nonstick cooking spray.
2. In large bowl, combine mashed potatoes, beaten eggs, cream cheese, sour cream, garlic powder, and pepper. With electric mixer, beat until smooth and creamy.
3. Fold in 1 cup shredded cheddar cheese, crumbled bacon, and chopped green onions.
4. Spread potato mixture into prepared baking dish. Sprinkle top with remaining ½ cup shredded cheese.
5. Bake 50 minutes or until golden brown and heated through.

Notes

Make mashed potatoes: Try Instant Pot mashed potatoes or slow cooker mashed potatoes. They can be made a day ahead and refrigerated. You can also use leftover mashed potatoes or store-bought mashed potatoes.

Cook bacon: we usually cook the bacon ahead. We often bake an entire package of bacon, crumble it, and freeze it to use for recipes like this. You can also make a small batch of bacon (reliable for this recipe) in your air fryer.

Make ahead: The casserole can be made a day ahead and stored, unbaked, in the refrigerator. When you’re ready to bake the casserole, take it out of the fridge while the oven preheats. Once it’s preheated, bake the casserole as directed. Add five to ten minutes to the baking time since the casserole is chilled.

Storage: Leftover mashed potato casserole should be refrigerated in a covered container. It will keep for up to 4 days, or it can be frozen for up to 2 months. Thaw in the refrigerator before reheating.

Smaller casserole: You can easily cut this recipe in half. Another idea is to divide it into 2 baking dishes and freeze one to bake and enjoy later.