If you love cheesy scalloped potatoes, and if you also love meatloaf and lasagna, then man oh man do we have the recipe for you!
This simple food hack shared by Scrumdiddlyumptious has combined the basics for these food favorites into a little slice of heaven. And they did it all in a bread loaf pan!
As they say in the caption- if you thought your loaf pan was just for bread, you’re sorely mistaken.
“Think loaf pans are only for bread and cake? Think again! We made a potato casserole that not only looks great, but also tastes amazing!“
Indeed, with the fine-tuned combo of cheese, potatoes, ground beef, spinach, tomatoes, and more cheese, this cheesy casserole loaf is one that will have your family begging for it over and over again.
And while it does take a while to cook (roughly an hour and 10 minutes), the process of putting it together is almost too simple not to have it on the weekly menu.
Here’s what you’ll need:
- 5 large Golden potatoes
- provolone, cheddar, swiss, or other favorite type of cheese slices
- 1 Tablespoon of Olive oil
- 1 large onion, chopped
- 1 clove of garlic, minced or crushed
- 1 lb of ground beef
- 2 teaspoons of paprika powder
- 1 can (14 oz.) of diced tomatoes
- 1 teaspoon of pepper
- 1 teaspoon of salt
- 1 cup (packed) fresh spinach leaves
- 2 Tablespoons of parsley for garnish
Step 1- The potato layer
Start by preheating your oven to 375°F and greasing a 12″ x 4″ loaf pan. Then, peel and thinly slice the potatoes.
Line the entire bottom of the loaf pan with potato slices and then line the sides as well.
Step 2- the cheesy layer
Next, completely cover the potato layer in cheese slices, including lining the sides of the pan with them as well. You can basically choose any cheese you like here, but if you want that melted stringy effect, we recommend going with something like Provolone or Mozzarella.
Step 3- Make the filling
After you’ve got your loaf pan prepped with all the cheesy and potato-y goodness, it’s time to prepare the filling.
Simply heat the olive oil over medium heat and add the onions. Allow them to cook for a moment before adding in the garlic as well. Let them continue to cook until the onions start to become translucent and the garlic is fragrant.
Then add in the ground beef and paprika seasoning. Let the beef cook until it’s browned and there’s no more pink left in it.
Step 4- layers of flavor
Once your beef is all browned up, add in the can of diced tomatoes and stir to combine. Then season with the salt and pepper, stirring again to incorporate. Finally, add in the fresh spinach leaves and allow to wilt slightly before stirring in. Let the whole mixture simmer for roughly 10 minutes.
Step 5- layer it in
Once your mixture has finished cooking, drop large spoonfuls of it into the loaf pan on top of the cheese layer to fill the bottom portion.
Step 6- double down
After you’ve got an even layer of the beef mix in the bottom of the pan, cover it with another layer of potatoes, and then add in another layer of cheese. This is where you can get creative and throw in a second type of cheese, if you like.
Step 7- Fill, fill, fill
Next, cover the top of the cheese once more in the beef and tomato mixture. Keep layering until it reaches the top of the cheese slices lining the sides of the loaf pan. Then, wedge in more potatoes on the side to reach the top of the pan.
Step 8- The final layer
Next, add a final layer of potato slices to top the whole thing off.
Bake at 375℉ for 1 hour and 10 minutes. Pull and place on a trivet or cooling rack for 10 – 15 minutes and garnish with parsley.
Now all that’s left to do is dig in and enjoy!
Get the full tutorial by Scrumdiddlyumptious in the video below!
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