*Hash*

Lately we've been having roast, carrots, and potatoes for dinner on my Monday night cooking club night...then Hash for Tuesday night. It's just an EASY meal for me when it's such a crazy night. And my family loves it. So... everyone in my cooking clubs- and a lot of other people keep wondering, "What the heck is Hash?" Well, I didn't know either, til I married Luke. Basically it's just leftover roast with a twist.

So, first you have to make a roast. The way I do it is turn my crockpot to high (if the roast is frozen, low if it's thawed) and put in a 2-3lb roast (or 2!). I pour about a cup of water over the top, then sprinkle it generously with garlic salt, onion salt, salt and pepper. (No, it is NOT too salty.) Then I chop an onion into 8 wedges and throw them in. I leave it on that setting from about 1pm to 3pm. At 3pm I add as many potatoes (halved) and carrots (halved...or baby carrots) as I can cram into my crockpot (and always wish for a bigger pot) and turn the setting to high. I sprinkle those with the same 4 spices. I leave it on high for about an hour then turn it to low again until it's time to eat. (if you can't be around all day, like I am, then just stick it all in (with a thawed roast) and turn it on low for about 4 hours) So, night 1 I serve that meal...

The next day, I chop the potatoes and carrots into bite size pieces and fry them in a layer of oil (preferrably, actually, bacon grease. Say, 2 Tablespoons...) When they seem almost fried I add chopped (bitesize) roast pieces and continue frying it all until the first piece burns. (Try not to let a bunch of first pieces burn all at once. Or you could just keep frying them until they are hot!) Now, one tip is to get the pan and oil heated up on medium heat until you can flick water into it and it sizzles. THEN and ONLY then do you add the potatoes and carrots. This is what makes them crispy. While it's all frying I like to add more garlic salt, onion salt and pepper to the pieces. Oh my goodness...until I had hash I hated roast. Now I tolerate roast to get to the hash. I've even considered making a roast and saving it for hash. But I don't think Luke would love that.

This meal is seriously SO easy. Quick clean up. And even in the summer it's do-able since it won't heat your house to blazes. Before you judge it, TRY it. At least the hash part.

Alfredo Potato Lasagna

This is what we had for dinner tonight. My camera seems to have gone AWOL, so no pictures! If you are planning to make this recipe, keep in mind that it takes an hour and ten minutes to bake, then another 10 to cool. I tried to have it in the oven by 3:45pm to be ready to eat around 5:15pm. I am not giving the exact recipe since I made some changes that I think enhanced the flavor.

Ingredients:
1 jar (12-16oz) Alfredo sauce (the more flavor the better, in my opinion)
1 cup milk
3 lbs potatoes, peeled and sliced 1/8 inch thick
5 T parmesan cheese
1 1/2 cups shredded swiss cheese
1 cup shredded mozarella cheese
16oz bag of frozen broccoli, thawed (or equivelant of fresh broccoli!)
2- 2 1/2 cups cubed ham

1. Mix alfredo sauce and milk and whisk together. Peel and slice the potatoes. If you have the Pampered Chef Ultimate Mandolin this is a GREAT fast way to slice those potatoes!

2. Lightly grease the bottom of a deep 9x13 pan. Pour 3/4 cup of the alfredo mixture onto bottom of pan. Layer 1/3 of the potatoes. Sprinkle about 1/3 of the parmesan cheese over potatoes, then salt and pepper to taste. (I did a good healthy layer of both and it wasn't quite enough.) Sprinkle 1/3 of the ham, broccoli, and cheese. Lay another 1/3 of the potatoes, then another 1/3 of ham, broccoli and cheese. Follow that layer with the rest of the potatoes, ham, broccoli and cheese. Pour the rest of the alfredo mixture over that and top with the remaining Parmesan cheese.

3. Cover, and bake at 400* for 45 minutes. Uncover; reduce heat to 350* and back for another 25 minutes. Let stand for 10 minutes to thicken and cool before serving.

It really was a tasty meal-for potatoes! (If you know me well, you know I really don't like potatoes a whole lot. But I really enjoyed this recipe!) Also, I used parmesan garlic alfredo sauce. I think the 3 cheeses kind would be good too! The more flavor the better!

YOu can make this and freeze it, the only catch is that it does need to be completely thawed before you start baking or the potatoes won't get done! To do this I take it out the night before and put it on the counter on a dish towel and let it sit overnight.