When Going The Extra Mile Is Worth It 🍽 My Take On Potato Au Gratin

The last few Foodies Bee Hive posts from me were all centered around fuss-free cooking, though I did mention that I wanted to try a more elaborate dish. If only I managed my time better - which I didn't fully succeed in - but I did manage to at least start earlier and follow through this time. Creamy potato gratin with spice and a hint of nutty flavor was the result of those efforts. It's all still in the spirit of "make do with what you have".

This recipe requires four huge potatoes, one medium onion (optional), two small paprikas, butter, cornstarch (if available all purpose flour could be used instead), whole milk, shredded cheese and salt and pepper to taste. Allocated time is approximately two (2) hours of which one and a half (1.5) hours is needed to bake in the oven (depending on the oven).

Needed to make the roux:

• 3 tablespoons cornstarch
• 3 tablespoons butter
• salt to taste
• 0.5 liter whole milk
• 1.5 cups cheese

Because I don't have a measuring cup, I was breaking my head over how to measure the ingredients and then it hit me: the rice cooker has a measuring line and that's what I used to measure my ingredients. After solving that problem, I started with shredding the Gouda cheese I had and cutting and slicing the potatoes thinly. Then it was time to cut the onion into small rings and to dice the paprika.

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After that the casserole was buttered up and a first layer of the potatoes was placed, that got salt and peppered on.

And then, the onion rings went on top.

Proceeded with a second layer of potatoes and repeated with salt and pepper.

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After that it was time to start on the sauce on mid to low heat. Depending on how fast the oven is, this was the time to pre-heat the oven at 400° F. For the roux the butter was melted first, then the cornstarch was gradually added and mixed to prevent clumps. After all the cornstarch was mixed in, gradually added the milk and whisked after every batch to prevent clumps and burning of the sauce.

After a few minutes of whisking the sauce and noticing that it has thickened, added 2/3 of the cheese and kept mixing the ingredients. When the cheese was melted, the paprika was added and whisked into the sauce. Because it was salted butter, only a pinch of salt to taste was needed in the sauce.

Not long after having whisked in the paprika, the roux was evenly distributed on the potatoes, after which the remaining 1/3 of the cheese served as the topping of the potatoes. Then, foil over it and the casserole was placed in a baking pan with some water, to let the potatoes bake evenly.

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Into the oven it went and it baked for approximately 1.5 hours. It was done when I was able to easily pinch through the potatoes and seeing the top bubble and cook. The potatoes were served with my green peas and ham, but a steak, chicken, spinach and other greens and meats would also go well with it.

Though I prefer fuss-free recipes, the effort put into this meal was well worth it. The kick from the green peas and ham paired well with the creamy, cheesy and nutty sauce of the potatoes. It was all an explosion of flavors and yet not overpowering. What did you have today? Let me know in the comments below 🤓.