Cheeseburger Casserole

I am posting this recipe upon request. I had a facebook status saying that I was making this recipe because my Mom used to make it and I thought it was yummy so I wanted to try it. After making it I did have some thoughts so I'll post those too!

Cheeseburger Casserole (Serves 4-6)

6 Medium potatoes, cooked and cubed*
1/4 cup butter or margarine
1/4 cup flour
2 cups milk
2 teaspoons salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper
1/4 teaspoon paprika
4 tablespoons A1 Steak Sauce (or equavalent)
1 lb. extra lean ground beef
6 slices processed American cheese

1. Spread cooked potatoes in buttered 8" x 12" shallow baking pan.
**The pan I used was not buttered, I don't see why you'd have to do this as nothing stuck to the pan I used (a glass pirex dish).
2. In 2-quart sauce pan, melt butter. Stir in flour. Cook, stirring constantly, for 2 minutes. Add milk, seasonings, and 2 tablespoons of A1. Cook, stirring occasionally, until thickened. Pour sauce over potatoes.
**I mixed all of these ingredients except for the flour and cooked it until just before boiling then slowly sifted in the flour - worked out fine and seemed faster.
3. Mix beef with remaining 2 tables spoons of A1. Form 6 patties. Arrainge on top of sauce/potatoes.
**It's much easier to just crumble the ground beef on top. I would even suggest adding a little more A1 to it if you like the flavor of A1.
4. Bake in preheated 375* oven for 20 minutes or until hot and bubbly.
**Or in the microwave until beef is cooked thoroughly, which for me took about 20 minutes.
5. Place cheese slices over meat patties. Continue baking for 5 minutes or until cheese is melted.

Ok.. my overall notes (per the way my Mom made this) and my suggestions:
- When you're cooking the potatoes, do it as if you were going to make mashed potatoes (peel, cube into bite size pieces and boil) only not quite as long. You don't want the potatoes to be mushy, but if you can cut them with the side of your fork then that should be good. Roughly a 20 minute boil.
- Pre-cooking the ground beef before putting on top of the potato mixture. This would ensure that the beef is cooked throughly and evenly. When I was cooking this (per recipe) it seemed to take a while for it to be cooked all the way and the edges were over cooked. You could also pour off the grease and it'd be a healthier dish.
- I used way more than six slices of cheese, I used enough to cover the top of the entire mixture. Everyone seems to love the cheese/ground beef part the best too, so the more cheese the better, I think. I even thought of just using shredded cheese over the top too (cheddar and mozzarella mix).
- My father in law suggested adding sliced ortega chili's to the mix, which sounded really good. Both he and my husband put salsa on their plates too. I imagine this meal would be great with anything you'd put on a cheeseburger.

So there you have it. Let me know if you end up trying this. It's super simple and most people like it.