Loaded Potato and Buffalo Chicken Casserole

A couple of weeks ago, Ben sent me a text message with a recipe that he had seen somewhere on facebook. I decided to make it just to see how it was, and I have to say, it was AWESOME. I wish I could find the original recipe, but all I have is the picture Ben sent me. I typed it all up for you here. Disclaimer: I DID NOT WRITE THIS RECIPE. I did not create it, nor do I take credit for it, and if you know the original source, let me know so I can link it here. 

Mixing the potatoes in the olive oil mixture. 

Finished product. So yummy!!

Loaded Potato and Buffalo Chicken Casserole

2 pounds boneless chicken breasts, cubed (1")
8-10 medium potatoes, cut in 1/2" cubes
1/3 cup olive oil
1 & 1/2 tsp salt
1 tbsp black pepper
1 tbsp paprika
2 tbsp garlic powder
6 tbsp hot sauce

Topping:
2 cups fiesta blend cheese
1 cup crumbled bacon
1 cup diced green onion

Preheat oven to 500 degrees. Spray a 9x13 baking dish with cooking spray. in a large bowl, mix together the olive oil, salt, pepper, paprika, garlic powder, and hot sauce. Add the cubed potatoes and stir to coat. Carefully scoop the potatoes into the prepared baking dish, leaving behind as much of the olive oil/hot sauce mixture as possible. Bake the potatoes for 45-50 minutes, until cooked through and crispy and browned on the outside. While the potatoes are cooking, add the cubed chicken to the bowl with the left over olive oil/ hot sauce mixture and stir to coat. Once the potatoes are fully cooked, remove from the oven and lower the oven temperature to 400 degrees. Top the cooked potatoes with the raw marinated chicken. In a bowl, mix together the cheese, bacon and green onion and top the raw chicken with the cheese micture. Return the casserole to the oven and bake for 15 minutes or until chicken is cooked through and the topping is bubbly delicious.
Serve with extra hot sauce and/or ranch dressing.

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