Sunday, April 20, 2014

A Bag of Taters And Craving To Cure



I love, love, love au gratin potatoes and rarely treat myself. I'm the only one in the house that will eat 'em so I don't bother making them. I've got a ham that needs to get eat'n up and what better thing to go with ham than some good cheesy potatoes! I've got myself a craving. And a big ol' bag of red taters. And I got me some cheese.  I'm gonna treat myself.

When I've made au gratin potatoes in the past I've used the dreaded canned soups. I've been trying my dangdest to quit using those but I've gotta admit, they can come in handy on occasion. I just don't make a habit out of it. But this recipe, I'm proud to say, does not use that awful canned stuff.

So....since this recipe used nothing but wholesome yummy ingredients, all of which I had in my cupboard or refrigerator I gave it a go and haven't looked back since. Mmmmm.... Let's get cookin'....



Steak House Au Gratin Potatoes

2 tablespoon butter

2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
2 cloves garlic, minced
3 large red potatoes, sliced on a mandolin 1/4" thick
1 small onion, sliced 1/4" thick or so
1 cup heavy cream
1/2 cup 2% reduced-fat milk
salt and black pepper to taste
2 cups grated Sharp Cheddar cheese, reserving 1/2 cup to add towards end of cooking

Preheat an oven to 350 degrees F. Grease one 11 x 7 inch baking pan with butter. Layer potatoes and onion evenly in the pan.

In a heavy saucepan, melt butter over medium heat, stir in garlic and cook for 30 seconds. Add flour and whisk together until smooth; continue to whisk and cook for one minute. Reduce heat to low and stir in heavy cream, milk, salt and pepper. Cook over low heat until slightly thickened, about 5 minutes. Add in the 1-1/2 cups cheese (1/2 cup at a time) and stir until melted. Pour cream mixture over the potatoes. Cover with foil.

Bake in the preheated oven for 20 minutes, then remove the foil. Continue baking until the potatoes are easily pierced with a fork, about 40 minutes. Remove potatoes from the oven and sprinkle remaining cheese on top. Return to oven and bake until the cheese is melted and potatoes start to brown, about 10-15 minutes. Allow to cool for 5 minutes before serving. Potatoes will thicken more while cooling.

These are so delicious! I almost ate the whole pan myself. Then I remembered I'd hate myself, so I quit. I will be thankful at lunch tomorrow :)

I found the original recipe at Allrecipes.com and tweaked slightly to my cooking style and to my tastes.

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