Description
Million Dollar Potato Casserole is a creamy, cheesy, and comforting casserole featuring tender hash brown potatoes mixed with a rich blend of cream cheese, sour cream, ricotta, and cream of chicken soup. Topped with buttery crushed crackers and baked to bubbly perfection, it’s a perfect side dish for gatherings or holiday meals.
Ingredients
Units
Scale
Main Ingredients
- Cooking spray, for greasing
- 1 (32-oz.) package frozen diced hash brown potatoes, thawed
- 4 oz. cream cheese, softened
- 1 cup sour cream
- 1 cup whole-milk ricotta cheese
- 1 (10.5-oz.) can cream of chicken soup
- 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1/2 teaspoon onion powder
- 2 cups shredded Cheddar cheese (about 8 oz.)
- 4 green onions, thinly sliced
Topping
- 1/4 cup unsalted butter, melted
- 32 buttery round crackers (such as Ritz), coarsely crushed
- 1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley
- Freshly ground black pepper, to taste
Instructions
- Prepare oven and baking dish: Preheat your oven to 350°F. Lightly grease a 9- x 13-inch or 3-quart baking dish with cooking spray to prevent sticking and allow easy serving.
- Mix wet ingredients: In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the softened cream cheese, sour cream, ricotta cheese, cream of chicken soup, kosher salt, garlic powder, and onion powder until smooth and well combined.
- Add hash browns and cheese: Fold in the thawed hash brown potatoes, shredded Cheddar cheese, and most of the sliced green onions into the creamy mixture. Reserve about 2 tablespoons of green onions for garnishing later.
- Add to baking dish: Spoon the potato mixture into the prepared baking dish and spread it out evenly to ensure uniform baking.
- Make cracker topping: In a medium bowl, combine the melted butter with the coarsely crushed buttery crackers, stirring well so the crackers are fully coated with butter.
- Top casserole: Evenly sprinkle the butter-coated crushed crackers over the potato mixture to create a crunchy, golden topping.
- Bake casserole: Place the baking dish in the preheated oven and bake for 50 to 55 minutes, or until the casserole is bubbly around the edges and the topping is golden brown.
- Add garnishes and serve: Remove from oven and sprinkle the reserved green onions, chopped fresh parsley, and freshly ground black pepper evenly over the top before serving for a fresh flavor and appealing look.
Notes
- Allow hash browns to fully thaw to ensure even baking texture.
- You can substitute cream of chicken soup with cream of mushroom soup for a different flavor or for a vegetarian option.
- For a lower-fat version, use low-fat sour cream and cheese, but the texture may be less creamy.
- Make sure to coarsely crush the crackers for a crunchy topping instead of fine crumbs.
- This casserole is best served fresh but can be refrigerated and reheated in the oven.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1/10th of casserole (about 175g)
- Calories: 350
- Sugar: 2g
- Sodium: 520mg
- Fat: 22g
- Saturated Fat: 12g
- Unsaturated Fat: 8g
- Trans Fat: 0.3g
- Carbohydrates: 26g
- Fiber: 2g
- Protein: 8g
- Cholesterol: 55mg
