Gratin Dauphinois (Scalloped Potatoes)

This is a great French recipe for serving potatoes on the side. (Gray-tun Doe-fuhn-wah)

When you search online, there are lots of recipes for Gratin Dauphinois containing cream and mounds of cheese, takes 2 hours to cook and contains enough calories to satisfy a platoon. People are confusing it with "Potatoes au gratin" and the more industrially weaponised version "cheesy potato bake"--a stand-alone dish that isn't designed to compliment anything and will tear a gaping hole in a everyone's diet. This, instead, is the simple, traditional French way to make Dauphinois and it tastes bloody amazing.

It helps, when slicing the potatoes, if you have a mandoline. But please, don't cast aside the safety precautions--always use the finger guards and food holders. I, stupidly, learned a hard lesson one evening while slicing pepperoni. Serve with roasts, steaks, or chops (the potatoes, not the fingertips).

Ingredients

• 1kg Potatoes, starchy kind, peeled
• 1 cup Milk or Cream
• 1 tspn Garlic, crushed
• 1 tspn Salt
• 0.5 tsp Pepper
• 4 tblspns Butter, melted

Method

1. Preheat oven to 220degC.
2. Slice potatoes 3mm inch thick and drop into a bowl of cold water.
3. Bring milk/cream to the boil in baking dish (1.5-2 litre, 5cm deep) with garlic, salt, and pepper.
4. Drain potatoes, add to boiling milk/cream, and pour butter over them.
5. Bake in middle level of preheated oven for about 30 minutes, until milk/cream is absorbed, potatoes are tender, and top has browned. (If not served immediately, keep warm, uncovered, adding a bit more milk if potatoes seem dry.)