Gratin Dauphinois Potatoes recipe Cooking made easy

This is possibly the richest, tastiest way to eat potatoes. As some have commented, I am not famous for my low fat recipes, and this one is no different. It is certainly important to buy good quality potatoes for this dish, because the sauce draws out the flavor of the potatoes. I prefer Desiree potatoes, but any good quality, non waxy potato is good. This is a French recipe, and calls for a shallow baking dish, no more than one inch deep. You can use a deeper dish, but do not layer the potatoes more than about an inch. A flan dish is fine. You can also add cheese if you wish, but I prefer to use good quality potatoes with just a hint of nutmeg. If you do decide to use cheese, just use a mild flavored one. It is also possible to pre-cook the potatoes, but, once again, I prefer the old fashioned method. It takes a little longer, but is worth the effort. This recipe serves 4.

You will need:

Equipment:

• A sharp knife
• A chopping board
• A shallow baking dish
• A bowl

Ingredients:

• 1 lb potatoes
• 2 oz butter
• ¼ pint heavy cream
• ¼ pint of milk
• 1 clove garlic, chopped
• Fresh nutmeg (dried will do in a pinch)
• Salt and pepper
• 1 large bottle of wine

First, open the wine, pour a glass and sip. Pre heat the oven to 300F or 150C. Next, peel and slice the potatoes thinly. Rinse the starch off the potatoes with cold water and pat dry. Butter the baking dish, and place a layer of potato slices in the bottom. It is important that the dish is well buttered to stop the potatoes from sticking. Season with salt and pepper and some of the garlic and continue layering until the potatoes are all used.

Next, mix the cream and milk together. Pour over the potatoes and sprinkle the top with knobs of butter and grated nutmeg.

Bake at the top of the oven for 1 ½ hours. The top should go brown and crispy. These potatoes go well with roast chicken, but these I served with fillet steak and haricot verts. I made a red wine and onion gravy for the steak that complements the potatoes nicely. Just be careful not to swamp the plate with gravy so that the potatoes are not immersed in the sauce.

Bon Apetit!