Recipe: Ham and Scalloped Potatoes

Ham and Scalloped Potatoes
rec.food.cooking/Meredith Tanner

Here's my mother's recipe. This was my favorite food when I was a kid -- I used to BEG for scalloped potatoes with ham. I was so disappointed when I found that no one else's recipe tasted the same -- the celery seed is the secret!

If you want to make this low-fat, you can use skim milk and low-fat or fat-free cheese in it, if you like, but the butter is indispensable.

3 or 4 potatoes
1/2 cup chopped onions
2 tablespoons butter
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1 1/4 cups milk
3/4 to 1 cup grated extra-sharp cheddar
1 cup diced ham
1/4 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. freshly ground black pepper
1/2 to 1 tsp. celery seed

Slice potatoes and set aside. Saute onion in butter about 5 minutes. Stir in the flour, salt, pepper, celery seed, and milk. Cook, stirring constantly, until the mixture begins to thicken.. Add the cheese and continue to cook until it has all melted.

Put 1/3 of the sliced potatoes into a 1-quart casserole. Distribute half the ham on top of the potatoes, and top with 1/2 of the cheese sauce. put another 1/3 of the potatoes in, with the other half of the ham, and cover that with the last 1/3 of the potatoes, and cover with the other 1/2 of the sauce.

Cover and bake at 350 for 35 minutes. Uncover and bake another 40 minutes, until potatoes are tender. Let stand 5 minutes before serving (to give the sauce time to set).