Gratin Dauphinois

This is one of my favorite potato dishes. Thinly sliced layers of potatoes with lots of cream and topped with cheese – what’s not to love? The dish gets its name from the Dauphine region of France, and the French are famous for their gratins, with little crispy bits of food stuck on the side of the baking dish. In this dish, you can adjust the proportions of milk and half-and-half to suit your taste.

Ingredients:

1 garlic clove, halved

1 T butter, softened

2 ½ pounds baking potatoes

1 cup milk

2 cups half-and-half

2 t salt

¼ t pepper

Pinch of nutmeg

1 cup Swiss or Gruyere cheese, grated

Directions:

Preheat oven to 400˚F.

Rub the bottom and sides of a 3 quart baking dish with the garlic half. When the garlic juice has dried, rub with the softened butter.

Peel the potatoes and slice very thinly, about 1/8 inch thick (this works best with a mandolin), and place in a large saucepan. Add the milk, half-and-half, salt, pepper and nutmeg to the potatoes in the saucepan. Bring the mixture to a low boil over medium heat and cook about 5 minutes until the mixture thickens slightly.

Pour potato mixture into the prepared baking dish and press the top down to submerge the potatoes in the liquid. Sprinkle with the grated cheese. Bake until the potatoes are tender and the top is golden, about 30 – 45 minutes.