The potato bar worked out very well. I left shopping and prepping of the potatoes and other vegetables mainly to my son and husband so we had about twice as much as we needed for dinner. But that's okay - the leftovers will be used and some is disappearing in the snacking as they play. I started from an apple cider cheddar cheese fondue recipe for the cheese sauce (link below) but made some modifications. I got a hard dry cider for this partly because in my experience with grueyer fondue, the cheese melts better in an acid liquid. I also diced the cheese and tossed it with the flour because that helps keep the cheese from clumping. I added smoked paprika instead of chili powder. Cilantro butter was pretty easy to put together and added a nice touch to the flavor: Cilantro butter 3/4 cups firmly packed cilantro leaves 1 stick (1/4 cup) butter Pinch of salt Pinch of pepper Process in food processor until fully creamed. We had shredded parmesean and cheddar cheeses. Mild and hot salsa (the fresh stuff from the refrigerator section at the market Steamed broccoli and carrots, Diced green pepper and green onions Chana Masala (cilantro butter was really nice with this too) Yogurt and sour cream (separately - not mixed together Taco flavor smart ground Tortilla chips for grazing through the evening with the toppings or in case a potato hater wanted to have nachos instead. Here is a link that might be useful: Cheddar cider fondue

Not sure what size roaster oven you have but you can make it right in the roaster if you have a 4, 5 or 6 quart oven or use a dish if you use the larger oven. A "Nesco" as many if not most of their owners lovingly call them is a roaster oven and will do anything an oven will do and more. As for adjusting time, I wouldn't plan much on it, however it might take a little adjustment for certain things since it's smaller than a conventional oven. I see no reason why that recipe shouldn't work just fine in a Nesco or any other brand of electric roaster oven. I've made the macaroni/beef hotdish in my 4 qt and 6 qt, the best lasagna I ever made came out of the 4 qt Nesco, and as I've shared several times I've baked bread, meatloaf, burgers, brats, chili, pot roast, ribs, soup, stew, etc, etc... again, if it can be done in a slow cooker or an oven, you can probably do it as well or better in a roaster oven.

I'll second Marilyn's Party Potatoes! They are super but I wouldn't sub frozen potatoes. I tried it once and it's just not the same. The only thing I do differently is I cut the potatoes into small cubes rather than grate. It is so easy to use fresh potatoes in most any casserole recipe I rarely buy frozen. However you do need the frozen ones in Sue's quiche. It's delicious! If you don't mind using fresh potatoes, here are a couple more. Hot Dill Potato Salad (From Shirley Miller) 1T butter 1T flour 1/2tsp salt 1/2tsp dry dill weed 1c milk 1/2c mayonnaise 2T minced onion 4c potatoes, cooked, peeled & diced Melt butter, add flour and seasonings. Whisk in milk slowly, until mixture thickens. Add mayonnaise and onion, mix well. Fold in potatoes, place in casserole. Sprinkle with paprika, bake 30 minutes at 350F Asiago, Potato, and Bacon Gratin From Cooking Light 1 1/2 pounds peeled Yukon gold potatoes, cut into 1/4\-inch\-thick slices 1 teaspoon salt, divided Cooking spray 2 tablespoons minced shallots 1/4 cup all\-purpose flour 2 cups 1% low\-fat milk, divided 3/4 cup (3 ounces) grated Asiago cheese 1/4 cup chopped fresh chives 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper 4 bacon slices, cooked and crumbled 1/4 cup (1 ounce) grated fresh Parmesan cheese Preheat oven to 350°. Place potatoes in a large saucepan; cover with water. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat; simmer 5 minutes or until potatoes are almost tender. Drain. Sprinkle potatoes evenly with 1/4 teaspoon salt; set aside and keep warm. Heat a medium saucepan coated with cooking spray over medium heat. Add shallots; cook 2 minutes or until tender, stirring frequently. Lightly spoon flour into a dry measuring cup; level with a knife. Sprinkle flour over shallots. Gradually add 1/2 cup milk, stirring with a whisk until well blended. Gradually add remaining 1 1/2 cups milk, stirring with a whisk. Cook over medium heat 9 minutes or until thick, stirring frequently. Remove from heat; stir in 3/4 teaspoon salt, Asiago, chives, pepper, and bacon. Arrange half of potato slices in an 8\-inch square baking dish coated with cooking spray. Pour half of cheese sauce over potato slices. Top with remaining potato slices and cheese sauce; sprinkle with Parmesan. Bake at 350° for 35 minutes or until cheese is bubbly and lightly browned. Yield: 6 servings NUTRITION PER SERVING CALORIES 250(30% from fat); FAT 8.2g (sat 4.6g,mono 2.7g,poly 0.5g); PROTEIN 12.3g; CHOLESTEROL 23mg; CALCIUM 306mg; SODIUM 618mg; FIBER 2.3g; IRON 0.9mg; CARBOHYDRATE 31.9g ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Potatoes Savoyarde (from Williams Sonoma) 1T unsalted butter, melted plus 3T unsalted butter cut into small pieces 3 cloves garlic, minced 2T finely chopped fresh parsley 1\-1/2c shredded gruyere cheese 1/4tsp freshly ground pepper 2\-1/2lb potatoes, unpeeled and sliced 1\-1/2c chicken stock Preheat oven to 375F. Brush 2qt. baking dish with melted butter. In small bowl stir together garlic, parsley, cheese and pepper. Layer 1/3 of the potatoes in prepared dish and sprinkle 1/3 of the garlic/cheese mixture over the top. Dot with 1T of the butter pieces. Repeat the layers once, and finish with the remaining potatoes. Pour the stock and then the remaining garlic/cheese mixture, dot with remaining butter pieces. Cover dish with foil buttered on one side. Bake 30 minutes, remove foil and continue baking until potatoes are tender and top is brown and crusty, about 30\-40 minutes longer. Serves 6 Linda

We used this recipe of Ann's a couple of nights ago and it was delicious. I think it could be made ahead, except for the baking part. We used several kinds of cheeses in ours (cleaned out the fridge!), so it was very cheesey. We liked it better than twice baked. You could probably even add some crumbled bacon to it if you want and that would make it very similar to twice baked. OMG, this recipe was good -- I ate way too much of this and can't wait to cook it again. Home Cookin Chapter: Recipes From Thibeault's Table Potato Gratin ============= I don't usually follow a recipe when making a Potato Gratin. Use the following as a guideline and adjust everything to your own taste. For a rich dish, use butter and whipping cream. 3 to 5 Russett Potatoes (or more depending on number of servings required) 1 garlic clove 1 teaspoon fresh thyme (optional) Butter cream or milk Parmesan cheese Gruyère cheese as well as cheddars and blue cheeses can be added for a different taste all together. Salt and pepper . Rub cut garlic clove over the surface of a gratin or casserole dish. Butter. Slice potatoes and place in pot and add enough cream/milk to almost cover. Add the garlic clove, thyme, salt and pepper. Bring to a boil and simmer for a few minutes, stirring often so the potatoes do not stick. When the potatoes have released some of their starch and thickened the liquid,remove the garlic clove, add 1 to 2 tablespoons butter and some grated Parmesan cheese. Pour into prepared casserole dish, dot with butter and sprinkle with some more Parmesan cheese. Bake in a 375°F oven for 45 to 55 minutes or until potatoes are tender. Remove from oven and let sit for 10 minutes before serving. Another way to make a potato Gratin is to saute some thinly sliced onions in olive oil or butter until golden, add some thyme, and some chicken broth. Add the potatoes, salt and pepper and bring to a boil. Pour into a buttered casserole dish sprinkle with some Parmesan cheese and bake until cooked.