Loaded Mashed Potato Pie ~ Using Leftovers

Earlier this week, I shared a recipe for Mashed Potatoes and Cauliflower.  It's our new favorite recipe for mashed potatoes.  The last time I made them, I made a lot!  I think I may have tripled the recipe, so there were a lot of leftovers.  I decided to look for different ways to serve the leftovers. 

Like any foodie, I have a long list of new recipes I want to try.  I send myself emails containing recipes of interest, I've flooded my favorites file on my AOL toolbar, and I have post-its sticking out of my collection of cookbooks.  A few of the bookmarked recipes have been tried and made again, but most of them are un-tried and forgotten about until I get a rare moment to sit and clean out all of those files or read a cookbook. 

In recent months, I've discovered Pinterest.  I love Pinterest.  But, as most of you know, it's highly addictive.  I've had to limit my pinning time to just a couple of hours a week, otherwise I could easily lose an entire day browsing through all the beautiful photos of food, crafts, home improvement ideas, etc.  

After drooling over this Potato Tart photo on Pinterest, I knew I just had to make it right away.  I didn't want this recipe to be one of the long-forgotten "must try" dishes that I tell myself I will try someday.  The fact that this recipe called for leftover mashed potatoes and I had a big bowl of just that in the fridge really helped in my decision to not tuck this recipe away to be forgotten. 

I was a bit nervous, though.  This recipe called for pie crust.  That's uncharted territory for me.  The only thing I know of pie crusts are those pre-made graham cracker crusts sold in the pudding aisle of the super-market.  And, though, I'm a pie crust newby, I knew that particular crust wasn't what I needed for this recipe. 

I quickly sent out an email to my long-time friend, Lisa.  I told her I needed help finding a pie crust recipe that would work for this savory dish.  I also told her that I'd love to use Bisquick if at all possible, since I have a big ol' jar of it on my counter.  I also told her that I don't have a rolling pin, so I needed something that I could make just using my hands.  As always, Lisa was a great help.  She pointed me to a simple pie crust recipe that turned out to be perfect for this meal.  (Thanks, Lisa!)

As for the pie itself, I halved the recipe that I found on Pinterest for two reasons:

1. We're a small family.  I knew that Grace wouldn't touch it and that Joe and I would be left eating the entire pie. 
2. I wasn't sure how this recipe would turn out with my lack of crust making skills. 

In halving the recipe, I adjusted the ingredient amounts a bit according to what I had in the fridge and what I thought we would like best.  (i.e. less cheese since I'm not hugely fond of cheese, no green onions since I didn't have them.)

Oh, and I keep calling it a pie.  The original recipe calls it a tart.  The original recipe also looks beautiful and worthy of the fancier name.  Plus, I used a pie pan since like the rolling pin, I don't own a tart pan (can you tell I don't bake?).  So, I called this meal Loaded Mashed Potato Pie. 

Loaded Mashed Potato Pie

Ingredients:

• Pie Crust, homemade or store bought
• 2 strips turkey bacon
• 1/4 cup onion, finely chopped
• 1 heaping cup Cauliflower Mashed Potatoes, warmed (or your favorite mashed potatoes)
• 1/4 cup lite sour cream
• 1/3 cup reduced fat Colby-Jack Cheese
• salt and pepper to taste

Directions:

• Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
• Lightly grease a 9 inch pie plate (I used Crisco)
• Press pie crust into plate and pierce bottom of crust with fork several times. 
• Partially bake for 5-7 minutes.  Then allow to rest for 5 minutes. 
• While crust is baking, cook bacon in frying pan over medium heat, until crisp.
• Remove bacon and set aside. 
• If needed, drain off grease.  (The brand of turkey bacon we use, isn't greasy at all, so there was nothing to drain.)
• Add onions to the pan and cook until tender and transparent.  (Add a few drops of water as they are cooking if there isn't enough grease in the bottom of the pan.)
• Next, you'll want to layer your pie filling.  Starting with the mashed potatoes, spread evenly in the bottom of the pie crust. 
• Then, top the potatoes with a layer of sour cream, followed by the onion, then the bacon, and finally the cheese. 
• Season with salt and pepper. 
• Bake in oven for 15 minutes. 
• Slice and serve.  Top with additional cheese or sour cream if desired. 

Notes:

• Remember when I said halved the recipe since it would just be the two of us eating this?  Well, I wish I made 2 pies!  When dinner was finished, there was just one piece left!
• Reheats nicely!  Since we only had one slice left, I didn't want to turn on the oven to reheat it.  I simply heated it in a frying pan on the stove.  I turned the burner on medium/low and covered with a lid and let it heat for a few minutes, checking it often. 
• This is an excellent side dish!  We served this with chicken wings and coleslaw, I'm thinking this would also be a good served along with a bowl of soup in place of a sandwich. 
• I loved cauliflower (from the mashed potatoes and cauliflower) in this recipe! 

I'll be linking this post to the following blog carnivals and linky parties: 

• Food on Fridays
• Foodie Friday
• I'm Lovin It
• Food Friday