Josh Rising

Building the Future of Local AI, One Local Model at a Time.

Practical deep-dives into AI engineering, local LLMs, and custom software infrastructure optimized for consumer hardware.

Learn from my experiments.
local_inference.py 
import llama_cpp

llm = llama_cpp.Llama(
    model_path="gemma-4-12b-it-qat.gguf",
    n_ctx=131072,
    n_gpu_layers=-1
)

print("Initializing local session...")

Potatoes O’Brien Casserole

Written by

zero4281

in

Prep Time Bake Time Yield
10-15 mins 30 mins 6-8 servings

Equipment

  • Large copper-infused ceramic nonstick pan
  • Bamboo spatula
  • Garlic press
  • 9×13 baking dish (ungreased)
  • Medium bowl

Ingredients

Beef and vegetables

  • 1 1/2 pounds 90/10 ground beef
  • 1 onion, diced
  • 1 red bell pepper, diced
  • 1 green bell pepper, diced
  • 4-5 garlic cloves, peeled and pressed
  • 2 teaspoons steak seasoning
  • 2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce

Casserole mix and topping

  • 28 ounces (1 bag) frozen O’Brien hash brown potatoes
  • 10.5 ounces (1 can) cheddar cheese soup, undiluted
  • 1/2 cup sour cream
  • 16 ounces Crystal Farms shredded mozzarella, divided: 12 ounces for the mix, 4 ounces for the top

Instructions

1. Prep and preheat

  1. Heat the oven to 350°F so it’s ready when the casserole is assembled.
  2. Dice the onion. Halve it root to stem and leave the root on. Make one or two horizontal cuts parallel to the board, stopping short of the root. Slice toward the root, stopping about 85% of the way, then cut across those slices. The intact root holds the layers together, so the dice comes out even and fast.
  3. Peel the garlic cloves, halve them, remove the center, and press them. Dice both peppers.

2. Brown the beef

  1. Preheat the pan, then add the beef. Break it up with the bamboo spatula and cook until browned.
  2. Move the beef to the bowl with the spatula and leave whatever fat is in the pan. The onion and peppers go in next, and they need the pan surface to soften. Piled on top of the meat, they’d steam.

3. Cook the vegetables and bloom the seasoning

  1. Add the onion and peppers to the same pan and cook in the leftover fat until the onion turns translucent and the peppers soften.
  2. Add the garlic last and stir it in. It burns faster than anything else in the pan.
  3. Return the beef to the pan. Sprinkle the steak seasoning directly into the hot pan and stir for a few minutes before anything wet goes in. Spices bloom in hot fat; once the Worcestershire hits the pan, that window closes.
  4. Stir in the Worcestershire sauce and scrape up any browned bits from the bottom of the pan.

4. Assemble and bake

  1. In the ungreased 9×13 dish, stir together the beef mixture, the frozen potatoes, the cheddar cheese soup, the sour cream, and 12 ounces of the mozzarella. Don’t thaw the potatoes first. The warm beef mixture gives them a head start, and thawed potatoes go soft and shed water.
  2. Smooth the top and scatter the remaining 4 ounces of mozzarella over it.
  3. Bake uncovered for 30 minutes, until the cheese is melted and the edges are bubbling.

Notes & Storage

  • Freezing: Like any casserole, this freezes well. Portion it into individual servings or large batches before freezing.
  • Defrosting: Defrost overnight in the fridge.

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