Cheesy Ham and Potato Casserole

I prepared several smoked hams last week, one for a funeral dinner and the others to dice and have on-hand for in-a-pinch meals.  After surveying the fam on what to make with some of the ham, Kyle requested something 'cheesy and with potatoes'.  I quickly scanned a few of my go-to cook books and website and came up with the recipe below.  It was well-received by all (except Stella, who does not like potatoes (I am not sure I can claim her as my daughter :/)

Ingredients

• ~6 to 8 potatoes, fist-sized or slightly smaller (I used red-skinned, but russet or Yukon will also be great)
• 1 medium-sized onion, thinly sliced (could also use 1/2 onion and 1/2 leek)
• 1 c half-and-half
• 1 2/3 c milk (I used whole)
• ~1 1/2 tsp kosher salt
• ~1/2 tsp freshly ground black pepper
• few shakes of hot sauce/Tabasco sauce
• ~2 to 2 1/2 c of your favorite cheese (or combination of cheeses); I used sharp cheddar and Colby Jack (Gruyere, hot pepper, Gouda, fontina, etc. would be other good choices)
• 1/2 c freshly grated Parmesan cheese
• ~2 to 3 c of diced smoked ham

Directions

1. Pre-heat oven to 375°F.  Wash all potatoes and peel all (or part) of them, depending on your peel preference (I peeled ~1/3 and left the others peel-on).  Thinly slice the potatoes, around 1/8" thick.  Place the potato slices and onion in a large 

   sauté pan or electric skillet.  Add the half-and-half, milk, salt, pepper, and hot/Tabasco sauce; bring to a gentle boil.  Reduce heat and simmer for ~8-10 minutes (stirring occasionally), or until the potatoes start to become fork-tender (but retain their shape).

2. Spray a 9x13 baking dish with cooking spray and transfer half of the potato-cream sauce mixture to the dish.  Sprinkle with a little additional salt/pepper and add half of the ham; cover with half of the cheese.  Add the remaining potato-cream mixture; lightly sprinkle with salt/pepper again; add the remaining ham and top with the remaining cheese (including the Parmesan cheese).  Cover with foil. 
3. Bake for 25 minutes, remove foil, then bake for an additional 10-15 minutes, or until hot and bubbly.

I like to serve this with roasted Brussels sprouts but any green vegetable (steamed broccoli or green beans or roasted asparagus) would be a nice side dish.