Gratin dauphinois
It doesn’t really matter what you serve alongside your gratin, what you serve for dessert, even what wine you offer. This gratin will be the only thing your guests remember. (That is, if you can summon the courage to buy whole milk and cream. If you falter and go for skim milk and nonfat yogurt you’d better head back to the top shelf of the wine aisle and splurge on a better bottle, or two.) “La recette authentique” is courtesy of the cookbook "Mille et une recettes maison".
Print Recipe
Ingredients
- Potatoes 2.5 lbs. (1.2 kg)
- Milk whole, 1-⅔ cup (40 cl)
- Cream full, 1-⅔ cup (40 cl)
- Garlic 1
- Butter 3-½ Tbsp (50 g)
- Nutmeg
- Salt + pepper
Instructions
- Peel but do not wash the potatoes.
- Cut the potatoes into 1/8 inch (3 mm) slices. Place the slices on a kitchen cloth to dry.
- In a mixing bowl combine the potato slices with salt, pepper, and (if you have it) freshly ground nutmeg.
- Then, place the potatoes into a pan. Add the milk and cream. Cook covered over low heat for 30 minutes.
- Preheat the oven to 410°F (210°C). Prepare a casserole dish by rubbing it with the garlic clove while muttering ominous French phrases (any that come to mind will do). Then butter the dish.
- Carefully remove the cooked potatoes from the pan with a slotted spoon. Place them into the casserole dish, pour the cooked milk-cream on top.
- Cover with small pieces of butter. You can also sprinkle on some shredded Emmental cheese. If you don’t have any, rather skip the cheese than compromise the integrity of the gratin by substituting with a lesser cheese.
- Bake 20 minutes.
- Serve straight from the casserole dish.