Bowl of Heaven in Potato Form...

I am sitting here eating one of my All Time Favorite dishes and I thought I would share the recipe...these are Funeral Potatoes, some call them Mormon Potatoes, Cheesy Potatoes, Family Potatoes, Holiday Potatoes or some other variation of this...but they are Funeral Potatoes. The name? Where did it come from? I am no expert, but having lived in CO and ID and having Many family members from UT, I will tell you where it came from for us...Mormon Funerals. There is a culture of food for funerals and for LDS Wards it is Ham, Potato Casseroles and Green Jello. Don't ask me why, but I have been to a Number of Mormon Funerals and Every Single One of them had Ham, Potatoes and Green Jello...are there other things there? Yes...sometimes Rolls and a different color Jello. :) The last funeral I went to there were 4 different variations of the Potato Casserole...and for the sake of science I tried them all...and then went back for seconds of my 2 favorite and I "May" have gone back for thirds of the best...maybe.

After looking online, asking family and friends, perusing the Sisterhood of the LOSTies Cookbook and making MANY batches (for the sake of science and by request of my Big Brother,) I have come up with THE recipe for me and my family...

Funeral Potatoes a la Rachel Hope

5 Lg Red Potatoes, Baked
1 can Cream of Celery Soup
16 oz Sour Cream
1/4 sm Onion, shredded fine
2/3 soup can Milk
1 c CoJack Cheese, shredded
Salt & Pepper to taste

OK, the potatoes MUST be Baked...yes, you can use frozen hash browns or some other time-saving bag of potato-like substance, but the Only way to get the Ultimate flavor is to Bake your Potatoes!! I bake mine, then put them in the refrigerator until I am ready...this can be overnight ot 34 hours, however long it takes me to be ready. Then, you peel the potatoes and shred them...don't cut them into dices or strips or mash them...shred them!

Mix all the stuff together in a big Casserole pan...9x13 or something...then you can store it again if you want, but at this point you probably want to eat potatoes...so bake them at 350* until they bubble and turn brown on the edges.

*Optional: Mix melted butter and smashed potato chips or Triscuits or some other kind of crunchy thing and scatter it over the top of the potatoes about 15 min before you take them out of the oven.
Optional #2: these are Delish with Diced Ham added in before cooking!