Cheesy Hash Brown Casserole

It's both finals week and holiday party season. Casseroles are, in general, perfect dishes for busy weeks because cooking them doesn't require constant attention, they're filling, and you'll have tons of leftovers! Since they're also great for holiday parties, I figured I'd bring this one to share at work. This hash brown casserole tastes just like the dish at Cracker Barrel (meaning that it is both amazingly delicious & probably not-so-healthy). I actually made this the night before the party & heated it up in the morning.

Prep Time: 15 minutes
Cook Time: 60 minutes (+ any heating time in the morning)

Ingredients
One (1) large bag of shredded hash browns, thawed -- You can shred your own potatoes, but like I said, it's finals week.
Two (2) cups of shredded cheddar cheese
16 ounces of sour cream
10.5 ounces of cream of potato soup**
1/4 cup of unsalted butter, melted
Salt and pepper to taste -- I used a bunch of pepper

Directions
Preheat oven to 350F degrees.
Mix the sour cream, cheese, soup, and butter in a large mixing bowl.
Squeeze out any excess water from the thawed hash browns and mix them into the bowl as well.
Season with salt and pepper. Mix well.
Spoon into a 9x12" glass casserole dish.
Bake for one hour, until golden brown.
Share & enjoy!

Tip
** I made my own "cream of" soup for this one. I will be posting that as it's own recipe this week, because I think everyone needs to know how to make their own instead of using the super-processed Campbell's kind.