Dealing with leftovers: cheesy potato casserole bread

The Babe found a lovely recipe for dealing with excess mashed potatoes. I realize as I write this that this is a hard concept to fathom, the idea of too many mashed potatoes, even as leftovers, but I suppose that it is theoretically possible.

Given the premise that one might conceivably want to devote leftover mashed potatoes to something other than a vehicle for gravy and butter, the Babe found a lovely recipe for Cheesy Potato Casserole Bread, which uses leftover mashed potatoes that have, for some reason, been dubbed as "excess" potatoes.

I'm going to reproduce the recipe here for convenience, but all credit goes to Anna P, who posted the recipe on food.com. She says she got it from a flyer, so who knows who did this originally?

Cheesy Potato Casserole Bread
By Anna P. on May 20, 2003

Prep Time: 1 hr
Total Time: 1 3/4 hrs
Serves: 6
Yield: 1 Loaf

Ingredients
1 (1/4 ounce) envelope active dry yeast
1 cup warm milk
1/3 cup vegetable shortening, at room temperature
1 large egg
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
3 cups all-purpose flour
1 cup mashed potatoes, at room temperature
1/2 cup shredded extra-sharp cheddar cheese
1/2 cup freshly grated parmesan cheese

Directions

1. Grease a deep round or oval 2-quart casserole and set aside.
2. In a large mixing bowl, sprinkle the yeast over the milk and let dissolve.
3. Add the shortening, egg, salt, pepper, and 1 cup of the flour and beat till smooth, about 2 minutes Stir in the remaining 2 cups flour, the potatoes, and cheddar till well blended, scrape the dough in the prepared casserole, cover with plastic wrap, and let rise in a warm area till doubled in bulk, about 40 minutes.
4. Preheat the oven to 375°F.
5. Sprinkle the Parmesan evenly, over the top of the dough and bake till golden brown, about 45 minutes.
6. Transfer the bread to a wire rack to cool, then cut into slices.

Things worth noting

You'll put the initial ingredients in the bowl as directed, blend it vigorously with a beater, then add the rest of the ingredients and most of the flour save the last cup and beat that, then add the last cup and use a stiff spoon or large fork to mix everything... but you don't knead it! It's all mixed in the bowl and then you pour it right into the greased 2qt cooking dish, cover with saran wrap, and let it rise right there. When it's risen, you don't punch it down, but just slip it into the oven. The eggs provide the glue that you'd normally create by kneading and building up the gluten. So it's a cross between a quick bread and a yeast bread, but it doesn't leave that slight baking soda flavor in the back of the mouth. And it's very tasty!

Dealing with leftovers: cheesy potato casserole bread