Original Cheese Fries Casserole
Here is how to make a Cheese Fries Casserole. It is a large casserole with partially thawed French fries on the bottom, a gorgeous Cheddar cheese sauce ladled over the top and baked in an oven. The cheese sauce is flavored with Cheddar cheese, finely chopped onion sauteed in butter, and fresh parsley. The casserole is dressed up with some crunchy corn flakes near the end of baking! This casserole is versatile enough to accompany a lunch of sandwiches or to be served for dinner with steak! This will remind you of an appetizer you can get at a restaurant called Cheese Fries. Magnificent!
Here is how to make a Cheese Fries Casserole. It is a large casserole with partially thawed French fries on the bottom, a gorgeous Cheddar cheese sauce ladled over the top and baked in an oven. The cheese sauce is flavored with Cheddar cheese, finely chopped onion sauteed in butter, and fresh parsley. The casserole is dressed up with some crunchy corn flakes near the end of baking! This casserole is versatile enough to accompany a lunch of sandwiches or to be served for dinner with steak! This will remind you of an appetizer you can get at a restaurant called Cheese Fries. Magnificent!
- 2 cups milk
- 1/4 cup flour
- cooking oil spray for baking dish
- 26 oz. package frozen french fries (i used a small crinkle-cut style.)
- 3 tablespoons butter or margarine
- 1/2 small onion finely chopped
- 2 cups finely shredded sharp cheddar cheese
- 1/4 cup minced fresh parsley (or 1 1/2 teaspoons dried parsley)
- 1 to 1 1/2 cups corn flake cereal (or topping of your choice)
- Carbohydrate 5.24392375 g
- Cholesterol 40.2275 mg
- Fat 18.23424 g
- Fiber 0.262812503427267 g
- Protein 8.24493125 g
- Saturated Fat 9.007772625 g
- Serving Size 1 1 Serving (65g)
- Sodium 186.56475 mg
- Sugar 4.98111124657273 g
- Trans Fat 0.910783125000002 g
- Calories 217 calories
Step-by-step
- Thaw a 26-oz. package of frozen French fries for about ? hour to 1 hour.
- Spray the bottom and sides of a 13-inch by 9-inch by 2-inch baking dish with cooking oil spray.
- Place the French fries in the prepared dish, spreading them out to cover the bottom.
- Now, prepare you cheese sauce.
- Melt 3 tablespoons of butter or margarine in a medium-sized saucepan.
- Add ? small, finely chopped onion.
- Saute the onion over low heat until clear.
- Remove from heat.
- Add ? cup flour and stir until somewhat smooth.
- Add 2 cups milk and 2 cups shredded sharp Cheddar cheese.
- The mixture will be lumpy.
- Place over low heat, and stir continuously, mashing out any lumps, until cheese sauce is smooth and thickened.
- Remove the cheese sauce from heat and add ? cup minced fresh parsley.
- Pour the completed cheese sauce evenly over the French fries in the baking dish.
- Bake at 350 degrees for about 20 minutes.
- Remove from the oven, and add corn flake cereal in a border around the edge of the baking dish, and return to the oven for an additional 5 minutes or so of baking.
- When the casserole is bubbly and the topping is browned, remove from the oven and serve immediately!
Working Within Freezing Constraints
Frozen potatoes require specific handling when transferring straight from cold storage into a hot oven environment because excess surface moisture creates soggy results. Thawing the 26-ounce package for thirty to sixty minutes before assembly allows surface ice crystals to evaporate so the starches can absorb fat rather than steam inside the dish. When adapting this yield for smaller households, divide the components into an 8-inch square pan while reducing the baking duration by roughly five minutes to prevent scorching the dairy solids.
Mastering the Cheddar Emulsion
Building a stable cheese sauce starts with cooking the flour in melted butter until the raw starch flavor dissipates completely before introducing any liquid. Whisking the two cups of cold milk into the warm roux gradually prevents stubborn lumps from forming, ensuring that the sharp cheddar melts into a uniform emulsion when heated slowly over low flame. Sharp cheddar contains less moisture and more aged protein than mild varieties, meaning it provides a sharper profile but demands gentle heat control to avoid breaking the fat bonds.
Managing Texture and Heat
Adding crushed cereal late in the baking cycle protects the delicate flakes from burning while building a necessary textural contrast against the soft potatoes underneath. Introduce the cereal border only during the final five minutes of the total twenty-five-minute bake time at 350 degrees Fahrenheit, watching for bubbling edges and golden browning on the corn flakes. Leftovers keep safely in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to three days, though the crisp cereal topping will soften upon reheating and benefits from a quick refresh under the broiler.
