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Healthy Ham and Potato Casserole is a low calorie casserole made with frozen shredded potatoes for ease loaded with broccoli and topped with a creamy cheese sauce! A delicious main-dish or side dish. Gluten Free + Low Calorie
Who doesn't love cheesy scalloped potatoes? I sure do! When it comes to cooking, I love finding shortcuts to make healthier eating easier.
Let's be honest, making scalloped potatoes is time consuming. I'll gladly save take the shortcut of using frozen shredded potatoes instead of meticulously peeling and shredding them myself. If you enjoy that, then you do do!
The frozen pre-shredded potatoes not only save you time with this recipe, but also cook up nicely with the secret protein cream sauce. No thawing necessarily!
This healthy ham and potato casserole is pure comfort food and this version is made easier for you and healthier with a few simple ingredient swaps and additions!
I used my secret ingredient cottage cheese to make a high protein cream sauce that makes this dish super creamy and delicious when mixed with cheddar cheese. Swapping cottage cheese for heavy cream is a simple thing you can do in any recipe to lighten it up and make it healthier for you!
I also added broccoli to this dish because nutrients! Our body gets energy from nutrients especially produce. You gotta sneak them in where you can!
What Makes This Ham and Potato Casserole Better For You
- Lower Fat - This recipe has 15 grams of total fat, 5 of which are coming from saturated fat (less optimal). You can always use lower fat varieties of cottage cheese or scale back on the cheese a little more to reduce the fat more if you like.
- Lower Calories - Calories are not everything because the balance of macronutrients (protein, fat and carbs) is really important for hunger and satiety. This recipe makes 6 servings and has 336 calories per serving.
- Adequate Protein - A lot of recipes do not contain adequate protein. This recipe has 21 grams of protein per serving which 20-40 grams per meal is the nutritional RDA.
- Easy - This recipe is super simple and requires minimal effort for a load of comfort!
- Versatile Ingredients - The ingredients are easy to find and versatile so it will be forgiving if you swap things out.
- Gluten Free - This recipe is made with gluten free ingredients. See the substitutions section below for recommendations if you're not gluten free.
Healthy Ham and Potato Casserole Ingredients
Here's what you need to make this yummy and healthy ham potato casserole with broccoli! Please see the substitutions section at the bottom of this post for dairy-free and other substitution recommendations.
- Avocado Oil
- Yellow Onion
- Broccoli Florets
- Ham
- Shredded Potatoes
- Flour
- Milk
- Thyme
- Garlic Powder
- Salt and Pepper
- Cottage Cheese
- Cheddar Cheese
- Green Onions
You will also need a mixing bowl, skillet and a 13-inch by 9-inch baking dish.
How To Make Shredded Potatoes with Ham Casserole
Step One - Preheat the oven to 400 F. Prepare a 9-inch by 13-inch baking pan with nonstick cooking spray.
Step Two - Bring a large skillet to medium heat, add the oil, onion and broccoli florets. Cook for 5 minutes until the veggies are slightly tender.
Step Three - Reduce the temperature to low then add the flour tossing with the veggies. Next add the milk a ½ cup at a time stirring as you go. Add in the salt, pepper, thyme and garlic powder. Increase the heat to medium-high and let it come to a boil for 2 minutes uncovered. The mixture should thicken.
Step Four - Turn off the heat then add the frozen potatoes, ham and cottage cheese stirring the ingredients together. Transfer the contents from the skillet to the prepared baking pan then top with the cheddar cheese.
Step Five - Bake for 30 minutes then turn the broiler to high for 3 minutes to brown the top.
Step Six - Remove from the oven and serve topped with sliced green onions for garnish.
Frequently Asked Questions - Healthy Ham and Potato Casserole Recipe
Do I thaw the shredded potatoes or do I add the shredded potatoes while frozen?
Yes, you add them frozen. No need to thaw!
Do I have to use frozen broccoli?
No, you can use fresh broccoli. As note under the substitution section, you may need to cook fresh broccoli longer in step two.
Do I thaw the frozen broccoli?
You do not need to thaw the broccoli ahead of time. I personally think it's best to thaw the broccoli ahead of time and drain it to avoid sogginess.
Can I use deli ham?
Yes, you could use deli ham in the recipe. It will be thinner cut. Often delis do have pre-cooked ham so ask at the counter.
Storing Ham and Potato Casserole
- Refrigerating - Store leftovers in a covered container in the refrigerator up to 5 days. Leftovers can be reheated in the stove, microwave, toaster oven, or in a skillet.
- Freezing - You can prepare this recipe up to the point of baking then cover it and seal well with foil and a lid. It will keep in the freezer up to 3 months! When ready to bake, remove the casserole from the freezer and place in the refrigerator overnight. Then bake according to instructions. If you are freezing leftovers, you can do that up 3 months. It will be soggier than if you frozen before baking though.
Can I Make Cheesy Ham and Potato Ahead of Time
Yes! You can make this recipe ahead of time by following the instructions up to the point of baking and topping with cheese. Reserve the cheese until it's time to bake and store the casserole with a lid in the refrigerator until you're ready to bake it.
I don't recommend going beyond 3 days. Bake the uncooked casserole according to the instructions and top with cheese when ready!
If you're freezing the casserole before baking, remove from the freezer and place in the refrigerator overnight then finish baking per the instructions.
How To Make Gluten Free Ham and Potato Casserole
This casserole recipe is made gluten free. As long as you use gluten free flour, it will be gluten free for you. If you're not gluten free, you can use any flour. See the substitutions sections for more info on this!
How To Make Dairy Free Ham and Potato Casserole
Use dairy free milk. You can use a cashew cream sauce like this recipe instead of cottage cheese, or you can use this protein dairy-free yogurt. Then replace the cheddar cheese with a dairy free cheese alternative or nutritional yeast.
Substitutions For Low Calorie Ham and Potato Casserole Recipe
Here are the substitutions I recommend for this recipe. Remember when you make substitutions, the nutritional values will change from what you see in the recipe card below!
- Avocado Oil - Butter, ghee or coconut oil could be used. I do not recommend olive oil as the casserole is baked at a high temperature and olive oil should not be used at high temperatures.
- Yellow Onion - White onion or scallions can be used instead.
- Broccoli - I used frozen broccoli for the recipe that I thawed ahead of time. You can use fresh broccoli florets, but it may take longer for it to cook in step 2. You can also replace the broccoli with other veggies like carrots, Brussels sprouts or cauliflower.
- Shredded Potatoes - I used frozen shredded potatoes to make this recipe super simple. You can shred potatoes by hand if you prefer. Sweet potato or yams would be delicious substitutes in this recipe too!
- Ham - Shredded chicken, shredded pork, pre-cooked turkey breast or pre-cooked shrimp would be delicious. If you are vegetarian, tofu or tempeh would be good substitutes.
- Almond Milk - Any milk you enjoy will work for this recipe!
- Cottage Cheese - Plain Greek Yogurt can be used instead or ricotta cheese.
- Gluten Free Flour - You can use white, whole wheat, oat flour, gluten free flour or almond flour for this recipe. Coconut flour I imagine will be too thick for this recipe.
- Dairy Free - Use dairy free milk. You can use a cashew cream sauce like this recipe instead of cottage cheese, or you can use this protein dairy-free yogurt. Replace the cheddar cheese with a dairy free cheese alternative or nutritional yeast.
More Healthy Casserole Recipes
- Creamy Chicken Potato Casserole
- Chicken Enchilada Quinoa Casserole
- Italian Casserole
- Tuna Noodle Casserole
- Buffalo Chicken Casserole
Healthy Ham and Potato Casserole
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon Avocado Oil
- 1 cup Yellow Onion diced
- 2 cups Broccoli Florets frozen and thawed
- 2 1/2 cups Ham cooked and diced
- 1 lb Shredded Potatoes frozen
- 1/3 cup Gluten Free Flour for substitutions read the blog post
- 3 cups Unsweetened Almond Milk or milk of choice
- 1/2 teaspoon Garlic Powder
- 1/2 teaspoon Dried Thyme
- Salt and Pepper to taste
- 1/2 cup Low Fat Cottage Cheese
- 1/2 cup Cheddar Cheese shredded
- 2 Green Onions diced
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 400 F. Prepare a 9-inch by 13-inch baking pan with nonstick cooking spray.
- Bring a large skillet to medium heat, add the oil, onion and broccoli florets. Cook for 5 minutes until the veggies are slightly tender.
- Reduce the temperature to low then add the flour tossing with the veggies. Next add the milk a ½ cup at a time stirring as you go. Add in the salt, pepper, thyme and garlic powder. Increase the heat to medium-high and let it come to a boil for 2 minutes uncovered. The mixture should thicken.
- Turn off the heat then add the frozen potatoes, ham and cottage cheese stirring the ingredients together. Transfer the contents from the skillet to the prepared baking pan then top with the cheddar cheese.
- Bake for 30 minutes then turn the broiler to high for 3 minutes to brown the top.
- Remove from the oven and serve topped with sliced green onions for garnish.
Notes
- Recipe makes 6 servings. 1/6 of the recipe equals one serving or about 1 1/4 cups.
- My Amazon shop has more products similar to those used for this recipe and that I recommend to my weight loss clients.
Nutrition
Made this for Thanksgiving and it was delicious. Thank you!