You’ll need:

potatoes (about 1 per person)

butter

flour

milk or cream

Leftover ham, bacon, or other meat, chopped

Cheese, grated (I prefer sharp cheddar)

Chopped onions and garlic (optional)

1. Order a child to scrub the potatoes (or peel, if you prefer).  Drag them kicking and screaming into the kitchen.  Yep, that counts as a 10 minute shred.  Congratulate yourself on your multitasking, and go find the baby.  Break your diet by eating up her sweet little piggy toes.

2. Realize the water has been running for 30 minutes continously, and 10 potatoes should have been nice and clean by now.

3. Check on child.  Confiscate Barbie who is taking a bath in the kitchen sink, find a bath towel to dry the floor, and reiterate that clean potatoes are needed if child wants to eat.  Hold Barbie hostage.  Hide phone so child doesn’t call FBI.

4. Chop a pile of ham.  Maybe some onions, too, if you fancy.  Set aside.

5. Slice potatoes into rounds and semi-circles.  Cut them thicker than a potato chip.  Get bag of potato chips out to make sure you’re doing it right.  Sample potato chips.  Remember you have sour cream dip in the fridge.  Raid the fridge.

6. Munch.

7. Realize your pile of ham is dwindling.  Catch toddler red handed (ham handed)?  Decide to finish making dinner before the locust swarm of children snitches all of the meat.

8. Get a measuring cup and melt some butter (about 1 tbs. per 3 potatoes, more or less).  Add an equal amount of flour to the hot butter and blend together.  Add about a cup of milk or cream.  Hand over to child to blend well, so he won’t gobble up all the ham.

9. Open cabinet and find casserole dish.  You want a shallow one – go for the 9×13 over the souffle dish.  An avalanche of pans cascade onto your feet.  Realize that you’re not covered under workers comp.  Hop around a bit on one foot, in order to work off all those potato chip calories.  Complete your workout by bending, lifting, and shoving all the pans back into the cabinet and slamming the door shut.

10. Grease the casserole dish.  I use my trusty shortening brush.

11. Layer potatoes, a sprinkle of ham, onions if you like dragon breath, salt and pepper, and a sprinkle of cheese.  Lather, rinse, repeat until the dish is full or or use up all your potatoes.  If you are making a huge one with 10 potatoes, you’ll need to use your large roasting pan.

12. Pour milk/flour mixture over the top of the potatoes.  Add more milk if necessary, pour so it looks like your morning cereal (not drowning in cream, but not too dry either.)  Top with cheese.

13. Cover and bake at 375 degrees for 30 minutes; remove lid and bake for an additional 15 minutes to melt cheese and until potatoes are tender.

14. Serve!

Linking up to Common Room’s Potluck post and to