twice baked potatoe casserole

am i making your mouth water? are you dreaming of potatoes, garlic, bacon and cheddar cheese? i'm making this fabulous dish for my niece's first communion. this is something the family has come to expect from me at every big family get together. of course who could blame them. my own kids love this dish. which is high praise, considering everything else i make they turn their collective noses up at. i'm not joking, there are very few dishes i make that they actually like...well, let me rephrase that, there is very few dishes they like better than anyone else's. my spaghetti is ok, but grandma's is better. my fried chicken is ok, but aunt debbie's is way better. you get the drift. no one has even tried to make this. they are all scared to be compared to me (ha ha ha). anyway, i think they are scared to make it because i don't go by a recipe (a fact that bugs my mil) i go by feel. here's the "recipe".

TWICE BAKED POTATO CASSEROLE
(feeds at least 20)
5-7 pounds of red potatoes
1 large tub of sour cream
2 sticks of real butter
2-3 pounds of cheese
a table spoon or 2 of minced garlic
bacon bits...3 or 4 bags (or make your own- pound or 2)
milk (not sure about this, at least a cup, or more)

boil the potatoes. pre-heat the oven to 375. mash them with the butter, add milk until really creamy, add sour cream, bacon bits, and garlic, mix some more. add cheese last. mix pretty well. put into a couple of large casserole dishes, or one of those big throw away alum. pans. put into the oven and cook until the edges are brown and the center is getting a gold color.
*if you use shredded cheese, you can hold some back and put it on top. i personally use blocks of cheese that i cut into smallish chunks. just personal preference.
**i leave chunks in my potatoes. what can i say, i like chunks. i mash them, but leave some lumps. again, just personal preference.

this is a hard dish to screw up. seriously, if i haven't screwed it up yet (and i've been making it for years now) it'd be pretty hard for anyone to screw up!

now, i'm going to head to the store, take a shower, and then head to the party.

enjoy the beautiful weather!