This oven baked Amish haystack dinner is the kind of practical supper that has kept busy farm families fed for generations: simple pantry staples, very little fuss, and a hearty result that settles everyone at the table. It brings together raw ground beef, creamy soup, vegetables, and a starch in one baking dish, making a modest handful of ingredients stretch into a warm, satisfying meal with the plainspoken comfort so often found in Midwestern and Amish-style cooking.
Serve this casserole with buttered green beans, a crisp lettuce salad, or sliced garden tomatoes when they are in season. Warm dinner rolls, applesauce, or pickled beets fit right in beside it, and if you want to make the meal extra filling, a scoop of mashed potatoes or buttered noodles pairs beautifully with the creamy beef and vegetable layers.
Oven Baked 5-Ingredient Amish Haystack Dinner
Servings: 6
Ingredients
1 pound ground beef
1 can (10.5 ounces) cream of celery soup
3 medium potatoes, peeled and thinly sliced
1 can (14.5 ounces) cut green beans, drained
1 cup milk
Directions
1. Preheat your oven to 350°F and lightly grease a 9x13-inch casserole dish. Spread the raw ground beef evenly across the bottom of the dish and season lightly with salt and pepper if you like.
2. Layer the sliced potatoes evenly over the beef, then spread the drained green beans on top.
3. In a bowl, whisk together the cream of celery soup and milk until smooth, then pour the mixture evenly over the layers in the casserole dish.
4. Cover the dish tightly with foil and bake for 1 hour. Remove the foil and continue baking for 20 to 30 minutes more, until the potatoes are tender and the beef is fully cooked through.
5. Let the casserole rest for 10 minutes before serving so the layers can settle and the sauce can thicken slightly. Spoon onto plates and serve hot.
Variations & Tips
Add onion: If your family likes a little more savoriness, scatter 1 small thinly sliced onion over the ground beef before adding the potatoes. It bakes down sweet and soft and gives the whole dish a little extra old-fashioned flavor.
Use cream of mushroom: If cream of celery is not what you have in the pantry, cream of mushroom makes a fine substitute and keeps that same thrifty, comforting character. It will taste a bit deeper and earthier.
Slice potatoes thin: The most important tip in this recipe is to keep the potatoes thin and even so they finish cooking at the same rate. A mandoline or a very sharp knife helps, and if your slices are a little thicker, add extra covered baking time.
Drain well and rest before serving: Be sure the green beans are drained so the casserole does not turn watery, and always let it stand after baking. That short rest makes it easier to serve and gives the sauce time to come together nicely.