Scalloped Potatoes

The family is here for Christmas, so R and I did some cooking and baking together...something we enjoy. We had ham for Christmas Eve dinner, and I knew that scalloped potatoes go well with ham. Usually I make Julia Child's Pommes Savoyard, a dish where thinly sliced potatoes are baked in broth in a casserole with a bit of onions and some Swiss cheese. This time I decided to jazz it up a bit by adding some milk, thyme, peppercorns and extra Swiss cheese. I infused the milk with the thyme and a few peppercorns, but then strained it into a large bowl, then added the broth.  Immediately after slicing them, we coated the potatoes with that mixture. This allowed the starchy potato juices to blend into the liquid as well as allowing the liquid to coat the potato slices to keep them from turning brown. That extra starch thickens up the sauce just the right amount. Most of the rest of the recipe was Julia's recipe.

Look at this close up! Tender, flavorful potatoes, golden top crust, crispy bits of browned cheese at the edges. So good.

We enjoyed a delicious potato casserole with tender potatoes well flavored by the milk, broth, thyme, pepper and cheese, plus some butter and onion and garlic. Most of the liquid was absorbed by the potatoes as the casserole cooked with the rest forming a delicate sauce, and the cheese on top makes a golden crust that is appealing in looks and taste.

All of this takes a bit of work, including peeling and slicing the potatoes, but it's worth it for such a delicious side dish. My family loved it...and I'll bet your family will, too.

Scalloped Potatoes

1/2 cup milk
1/2 teaspoon fresh thyme leaves
5-6 peppercorns 
3 tablespoons butter, melted
2 tablespoons finely minced onion (I used about twice this amount...I love onions)
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 cup chicken broth (I used a bit more -see note below )
3 all-purpose potatoes (about 1 pound), peeled ( I used Idahos)
salt and pepper to taste
nutmeg, freshly grated if possible
1 cup grated Gruyere or Swiss cheese (about 4 ounces)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. In a small pot heat the milk, thyme leaves and peppercorns until mixture simmers, then turn off heat and let sit while you continue to work on the recipe. 

Combine the butter, onion and garlic. Use on third of the mixture to grease a shallow 1 quart baking dish. (A shallow dish is important so that you get plenty of browned topping!)

Use a large fine-mesh strainer to strain the milk mixture into a large bowl. Add the chicken broth. Discard the residue in the strainer.

Take peeled potatoes and slice them 1/8-inch thick. Put them into the bowl of milk/broth mixture and turn until all the slices are coated with the milk mixture. Leaving the milk mixture in the bowl, remove half  of the potatoes and spread in the baking dish on top of the butter mixture, and season to taste with salt and pepper and nutmeg.

Sprinkle a third of the cheese over the potatoes. 

Arrange the remaining potato slices in an even layer over the cheese; season with salt, pepper and nutmeg. Top with the remaining cheese.

Pour the milk and broth mixture over all and dot/spread evenly with the remaining butter mixture. Note: I made sure that the milk/broth mixture comes up almost to the top of the layered potatoes so that they will cook evenly throughout...you may need to use more broth than the recipe calls for but it is worth it and the broth cooks into the potatoes and cooks off so the potatoes keep their shape and are not soggy, so it's OK. No need to add additional milk; just more broth.

Cover and bake for 1 hour, then bake uncovered for another half hour or until the potatoes are tender throughout and golden brown on top and the milk/broth mixture is mostly absorbed. Serves 4 - 6.