A good use for those leftover mashed potatoes...

A couple weeks ago, I had some leftover mashed potatoes that I was not going to use up right away and ended up tossing them in the freezer. When I was preparing the menu for this week, I went over my inventory list of what we currently had in the freezer and saw we had a couple cups worth of those potatoes in there. As we have 3 freezers now (one chest freezer in the garage, 1 from the old side-by-side and the one from the new refrigerator we got a couple months ago) I find that keeping an inventory list updated is a must or I would end up forgetting about what exactly we had in there!

I decided to thaw out the potatoes so I could make these Crisp Mashed Potato Cakes for dinner. To try and impart the most flavor we could in these warm golden rounds, we cooked the green onions in a bit of the drippings left behind when we crisped up a couple slices of smoky bacon. The onions and bacon are combined with the chilled mashed potato (this will help keep them from sticking while you form them), seasonings and sharp white cheddar. The mixture is divided into equal portions with each being shaped into a thick patty - they are then dredged through coarse panko breadcrumbs.

To give the bottoms a head start, we preheated the baking sheet for about 5 minutes before we placed the coated patties on. When finished, the potatoes get a delicious crisp golden crust, while the inside stays moist and creamy. Between the salty bacon and cheese already stuffed inside, the flavors kind of reminded us of a twice-baked potato with tasty crunchy bits on top. This would be great as a side dish, but since both of us love potatoes in almost any form, we decided to just fill our bellies with these and a small side of chips - we are stuffed, but pretty content (carb overload anyone?)!

Recipes
Crisp Mashed Potato Cakes