Individual Parmesan Hash Brown Cups

By cecelia26_

Ingredients

• 1 (20 oz) bag Simply Potatoes Shredded Hash Browns; OR 3-1/2 cups shredded russet potatoes, rinsed and squeezed dry in a towel
• 3 green onions, chopped (approx. 1/3 cup), both white and green parts
• 1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese
• 1 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
• 2 tablespoon olive oil

Details

Servings 12
Adapted from theyummylife.com

Preparation

Step 1

Make-Ahead Sticky Buns

I love hash browns with a crispy exterior and moist tender interior. Traditional hash browns cooked on top of the stove are difficult to make in a big batch and serve to a crowd. So I tried baking these in individual portions in muffin tins that could be baked in the oven along with the sticky buns and quiche, and would be easy to serve buffet style.

By cooking these hashbrown in muffin tins, a large part of each individual serving forms a crispy, brown crust around the cup shape of each muffin portion. They remained tender and moist on the inside, just the way I like my hash browns. I added some Parmesan cheese and green onions for a flavor boost, and used a small amount of olive oil to help them brown. The result is a relatively healthy take on traditional hash browns that is easy to prepare and serve.

Make healthy Tater Tots using mini muffin pans.

Add all of the ingredients to the bowl and toss lightly with a fork.

Make ahead to cook later:

Combine the mixture, spoon it into the muffin tins, cover with plastic wrap, and refrigerate until ready to bake. Remove from fridge 30 minutes before baking time. They can be made the night before to cook and serve for breakfast/brunch the next day. (Note: If you shred your own potatoes, they may turn brown when prepared the night before. I recommend using the pre-shredded Simply Potatoes if you'll be making these ahead.)

Make and cook ahead for reheating later:

No question these are best when eaten freshly baked. However, you can bake them ahead of time, refrigerate or freeze them, and reheat them before serving. They lose some of their crispiness when they are reheated, but the texture and taste is still good. So, cooking them ahead is a convenient option, especially if you're taking them somewhere else to serve.

Make it a yummy day!

By Monica
Servings: makes 12

Directions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Coat 12 muffin tins with cooking spray; set aside. In large bowl, combine potatoes, onions, cheese, salt, and pepper. Toss lightly with a fork. Drizzle on olive oil. Toss with fork again until mixture is well combined. Spoon mixture evenly into 12 muffin cups. With the back of the spoon, apply gentle pressure to pack mixture into each cup. Bake for 60-75 minutes in lower third of oven. Let rest for 5 minutes, run a small knife or spatula around the edge of each cup, making sure the edges are loosened. Gently lift each potato cup out, invert it, place on serving plate bottom side up. Good served warm or room temperature.

MAKE AHEAD FOR COOKING LATER: Combine mixture, spoon it into muffin tins, cover with plastic wrap, and refrigerate until ready to bake. Remove from fridge 30 minutes before baking time. May be made the night before to cook and serve for breakfast the next day.

MAKE AND COOK AHEAD FOR REHEATING LATER: These are best when eaten freshly baked. However, they can be baked ahead of time, refrigerated or frozen, and reheated before serving. They lose some of their crispiness when reheated, but the texture and taste is still good.

FOR BITE-SIZE TATER TOTS - make them in mini muffin pans.

Hi, I wanted to tell you that I just made these and they are super delicious and sooooo easy to make. Thanks for posting the recipe :).

What a great idea these are - little hash brown cupcakes (that's what they remind me of!) So I made these last week and truly appreciated how easy they were - mix, put them in the cupcake pan and off to the oven. The last step however is the best, which is eating them!!

This is a perfect way to make hash browns, easy, tasty, and looks very presentable....what more could I ask for in a recipe? First, we love hash browns, but when you make them the regular way, you tend to eat way too many, but when they are smaller sizes, it just seems like we less.

I made this recipe and it was easy and turned out yummy. Only problem was that the cups were barely brown after 75 min. Do you have any recommendations as to what I else I can do? Should I add more cooking spray? Or perhaps flip them over and broil them for a few minutes?

Hi there. Is the cooking time still 60-75 minutes if I make it in the mini muffin pan, or would cooking time be shorter? Thank you!

These look great, I'll be making them for Christmas morning. Couple of tips. If using your own potatoes, you need to get a potato ricer to really squeeze ALL of the water out of them. Just squeezing them in a towel is not enough. The other thing is, if using your own potatoes and you want to grate them the night before, get some citric acid to mix in with them (commercially known as 'Fruit Fresh'). It doesn't change the taste but will keep them from going grey.

I woke up at 5:00am today (Christmas morning) thinking I should do something fun with the hashbrowns in the fridge. I am so glad I just found your site. I will be back, but now I am off to make Hash Brown Cups!!

These look wonderful and very easy to make, but I'm confused by your picture, did you use the jumbo muffin tins or just the regular size muffin tins? Thanks :)

Hi Julie--GOOD QUESTION! They are regular size muffin tins. I know they normally come with 12 muffins to a pan, but I have several regular size sets that have 6 muffins to a pan. I like that size so I have more flexibility in the number of muffins I make, and they are easier to fit around other things in the oven. But, I can see why it might look like the jumbo tins, since they traditionally come 6 to a pan. Thanks for asking. You may not be the only one who has been confused by that. It never occurred to me....until you asked. Thanks! :-)

Hi Margaret! Thanks so much for sharing the details of the yield of mini cups you got from this recipe and the food you paired it with. Sounds like a great combo. Just so you know, I actually do make these using extra virgin olive oil (that's the only thing I have in my pantry). They do turn out good and crusty that way.

These are delishious! I mixed in some bacon and put ketchup on top afterwards. I wonder if we could add eggs...

These are great. The only change I made was to do the mixing IN THE BAG! Not like I need another bowl to wash!

I'm gathering camping recipes and liked the hash brown muffins. Your idea of mixing in the bag did the trick for choosing this recipe. Thanks for the great idea!

When making my own hashbrowns I find it much easier to boil the potatoes whole. You don't want them to get as tender as a potato you would be serving right away. Let them cool enough to handle before peeling them...really easy to peel. When they are grated they are just like the Simply Potatoes...already cooked and you don't have to deal with them turning brown or squeezing water out of them.

Another trick I've found is to microwave the shredded potatoes in the bowl for 4 minutes, then stir with a fork and microwave another 2-4 minutes before putting them in the muffin tins. It cuts the baking time in half and if using metal tins they get even crispier on the outside. I go for anything that cuts down on oven time in this heat!

I'm making some to take camping...we are going to heat them up over the camp stove!

Good question, Rachael. I think the trick is to refrigerate the cooked potatoes before grating them. My mom used to make hash browns from cooked potatoes. She always grated them after they'd been chilled in the fridge. That firms them up so they grate without falling apart.

You can refrigerate them, if you wish, but I never did. Whether you boil, bake or microwave them, you don't let them get as done as you would if you were preparing them for boiled or baked potatoes. Just until you can puncture them with a sharp knife. I just put them on the counter until they were cool enough to handle and then peeled and grated them with no problem. I tried refrigerating them and, IMHO, they were harder to peel then.

Can I please just say- I LOVE that you always include weight watchers points because it makes my life so much easier. I am ashamed to say that I'm 29 years old and never had to cook for anyone before (bc I use to date chefs) and now I have to cook for my boyfriend-- and so far-- he loves everything I've tried from here. Thank you!!!!!!

Would it be too much work to lump ALL your "Make-Aheads" in one category. Sure would save a lot of time scrolling.. Do you think I could make this yummy one ahead/freeze and THEN bake????

These look amazing, I too use Simply Potatoes (they are healthier) I'm going to try and make these, I'm working with Simply Potatoes at the end of July too cook up an awesome side dish recipe, I'll be sure to throw in your link!! Stay tuned I'll be doing giveaways for them too!! Can't wait to try these!

Hi, I'm planning to make these for a brunch baby shower that I am hosting, but I'm not sure how to keep them warm while my main course (quiche) is in the oven. I don't think I can fit it all in there at the same time, even if they could cook at the same temp...but I'm wondering if I could do these first and then stack them in a crock pot or two to keep warm until ready to serve, or would they get soggy or something?? What do you think?!

I am not at ALL what I would consider a creative cook...but I was brainstorming ways to change this to maybe make it more healthy and was wondering if you think it'd work to add spaghetti squash in with the potatoes? I still think I'd want to use the potatoes just to make sure it has that 'hash brown' taste but I thought the squash might mix in well and add more nutrition. Am I way off base or do you think something like this would work?!

Hi Anna. That sounds like a VERY CREATIVE way to healthify this recipe! I haven't cooked much with spaghetti squash. If it's like other squashes, it probably has a lot of water; so you may need to wring out the water in order to avoid a soggy result. With some veggies (like cucumbers), if you salt them it draws out the water; although I don't know if that works with squash. Aside from the moisture issue (if there even is one), I don't see any reason why adding spaghetti squash to this recipe wouldn't work. If you try it, I'd love to hear how it turns out! Thanks for sharing your CREATIVE idea! :-)

These look so delicious and easy to make. I saw a tip the other day that suggested cooking small batches of hash browns in a waffle iron to maximize the cripy edges but I like this idea so much better. It's easy to pop these in the oven and "forget" about them. Thanks for all the fabulous but easy recipes. I could get lost in your recipes for hours!

Hi Caren. I haven't tried this using frozen hash browns, but I would guess you could make it the same way with them.

I don't buy the frozen hash browns because they have nasty chemicals added to keep them separated and white. I shred potatoes (a food processor makes this a snap), then put a handful at a time in a nut bag, rinse well with water, then squeeze out as much water as possible. It's the starch in the potato that makes them mushy, so you want to rinse them well. It's also the starch that makes them turn brown. I freeze them on a non-stick tray overnight, and then put them in a container in the freezer. So, you can certainly make these easily enough with fresh potatoes.

Hi Jill. We are of like minds! I have topped these with eggs, too. I add eggs in the last 10 minutes of baking time, and that gives me an egg with a slightly runny center (that's the way I like mine). But, ovens, of course, can vary. Hope yours turn out to your liking next time. Thanks for sharing! :-)

Do you think this would turn out well if you left out the cheese (maybe added a bit more onion? I am trying to find a healthy way to make potato latkes without frying them.

Hi. I'm really not sure how these would turn out without the cheese. In addition to adding flavor, I think the cheese probably helps "glue" them together and brown better. But, maybe it's not essential. Hard to say.

Your friend's email address

Thanks for stopping by! This is a place to chat about the good things in life with a focus on fun, easy, healthy recipes and an occasional yummy splurge thrown in.

Enter your email address and all new posts will be emailed to you.

Email Address: