I wanted to try something a bit new for a baked dip recently. 

Mashed potatoes just happen to be one of my favorite foods so I thought I would try my hand at coming up with a mashed potato dip. My idea was to mash up the potatoes with all kinds of goodies and then bake them with cheese and scallions and bacon on top.

This dip is ready for some football.

My main concern with this dip was texture. I didn’t want it to have the texture of mashed potatoes which I knew was going to be hard considering that it was basically mashed potatoes. I tried to make it more “dip-like” by mixing in a good amount of cream and cream cheese.

Obviously, if you don’t like mashed potatoes, I wouldn’t recommend this guy. But who doesn’t like mashed potatoes?!

Baked Mashed Potato Dip

5 from 2 votes
Author: Nick Evans
Servings: 8 Servings
Prep Time: 30 minutes
Cook Time: 30 minutes
Total Time: 1 hour

Equipment

Ingredients 

  • 5 medium Russet potatoes, peeled and roughly chopped
  • 8 ounces cream cheese
  • 1 ½ Cups heavy cream
  • 5 cloves garlic, minced
  • 1 bunch scallions, minced and separated (greens and whites)
  • ½ Pound bacon, diced
  • 6 ounces cheddar cheese
  • ½ Teaspoon cayenne, optional
  • Salt and Pepper
  • Butter, just for buttering the baking dish

Instructions

  • Boil a large pot of water with about 1 Tablespoon of salt per gallon of water in it.
  • Peel and chop potatoes in chunks.
  • Once water is boiling, throw potatoes in and boil for about 12 minutes or until a knife very easily slices a larger piece.
  • Drain the potatoes and add them to a bowl.
  • While potatoes are cooking chop the scallions (remember to keep your scallions separated into white and green), cook the bacon, and grate the cheese.
  • Once potatoes are cooked, add onions, garlic, cream cheese, cream, and cayenne to the mashed potatoes and mix them up.
  • Taste for salt and pepper and adjust accordingly.
  • Add potatoes to a 9X9 baking dish that has been lightly buttered. Top with a good amount of shredded cheese, green scallions, and bacon.
  • Bake for about 30 minutes at 350 or until the cheese is gooey and bubbly.
  • Serve this with a variety of chips, toasted baguettes, or even just a few spoons.

Nutrition

Serving: 1bowl | Calories: 495kcal | Carbohydrates: 29g | Protein: 17g | Fat: 35g | Saturated Fat: 18g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 3g | Monounsaturated Fat: 11g | Trans Fat: 0.04g | Cholesterol: 94mg | Sodium: 545mg | Potassium: 763mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 4g | Vitamin A: 963IU | Vitamin C: 9mg | Calcium: 303mg | Iron: 1mg
Course: Appetizers, Dips, Side Dishes
Cuisine: American

Did you make this recipe?

Tag @crunchtimekitchen

Cooking the potatoes

Get a large pot of water boiling with about 1 Tablespoon of salt per gallon of water in it. Peel and chop your potatoes until you have this:

Easy chopping.
Easy chopping.

Once your water is boiling, throw them in and forget about them for about 12 minutes or until a knife very easily slices a larger piece.

Then drain the potatoes and add them to a bowl.

Hot potato!
Hot potato!

While your potatoes are cooking you can do some other things like chop the scallions, cook the bacon, and grate the cheese. Remember to keep your scallions separated into white and green.

I decided to mix the white parts in with the potatoes and use the greens as a topping. Worked great!

Keep them seperated.
Keep them separated.

Once your potatoes are cooked, add your onions, garlic, cream cheese, cream, and cayenne to the mashed potatoes and mix them up. I used a hand held mixer to get the potatoes really smooth. You could do it by hand though with a fork if you want (don’t mind) a chunkier final product. Don’t forget to taste for salt and pepper and adjust accordingly.

Some of you may note that there is no butter in the actual mashed potatoes which I would normally consider blasphemy. With all of the cream and cream cheese, I thought butter might be overkill. Feel free to add a bit though if you just can’t handle it.

Pretty creamy.
Pretty creamy.

Finishing the Dish

Add your potatoes to a 9X9 baking dish that has been lightly buttered. Top with a good amount of shredded cheese!

Dip with cheese.
Dip with cheese.

And of course those green scallions and bacon. I only baconized half my dish because Jeff wanted some also (vegetarian). The 1/2 pound in the recipe will be more than enough though to baconize the entire dish.

On the bacon, I sauteed mine in a skillet for a few minuted after I minced it up. Remember that it will crisp up even more in the oven so don’t over-cook it originally or it will just burn.

Ready for a bake.
Ready for a bake.

The dip needs to bake for about 30 minutes at 350 or until the cheese is gooey and bubbly.

You could serve this with a variety of chips, toasted baguettes, or heck even just a few spoons.

Pretty good!
Pretty good!

A few notes on this dip:

1) It was really good and the texture was pretty close to what I wanted. If anyone has any ideas on how to add a bit more creaminess (dippiness) to it, leave a comment!
2) I think it’s a pretty flexible dip. You could add anything that you would add to a baked potato and it would be delicious. That includes broccoli, fresh herbs, and various other kinds of cheese. I’m sure I’m missing some possible add-ins.
3) I think I may start a movement to always add cream cheese to mashed potatoes. Don’t tell anybody I said this, but it might be better than butter.
4) I ate this on night one as a dip and on night two as just mashed potatoes. Awesome both ways.

If anybody tries this or can think of improvements, leave a comment!