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AAF’s Recipe(s) of the Day

Written by Asinus Asinum Fricat on May 20, 2008 – 1:59 pm -

More potato recipes! Two of them. Pommes Boulangère and its sister, Pommes Dauphinoise, both great accompaniments for roast meats, or on their own.

I never fail to get loads of compliments for this version of Pommes Dauphinoise. The secret is simple. I cook the potato and cream mixture in a large saucepan for about ten minutes before transferring to a gratin dish. This really helps ensure accurate seasoning, as you can taste the seasoned mixture before it goes in the oven, as opposed to endlessly layering up spuds, cream, salt and pepper, but not really knowing what it tastes like.

Traditionally, Pommes Dauphinoise is made by rubbing a gratin dish with some butter and a clove of garlic, followed by layers of spuds, cream, salt and perhaps a little nutmeg. I prefer to do mine with less cream (milk instead), more garlic and a good topping of Gruyère cheese.

 

 

So you will need a large knob of butter, 1kg potatoes washed and thinly sliced (leave the skins on), 300 ml cream,
300 ml milk, salt and pepper to taste, 2-3 cloves garlic, peeled and crushed, 200g grated Gruyère cheese (some people also like grated Edam), 2 bay leaves and a pinch of nutmeg. Preheat your oven to 180C.
Rub the gratin dish with butter. Put the sliced potatoes, cream, milk and garlic in a large saucepan and gently bring to the boil. There should be enough liquid to generously cover the potatoes. If not, top up by adding equal quantities of milk and cream. Cook the potatoes by gently simmering the mixture for about 5-10 minutes. Taste the liquid, and make sure it’s salty enough. Remove from the heat, scoop out the potatoes and layer them fairly neatly in a gratin dish. Pour in the creamy liquid, add the 2 bay leaves. Again, make sure there is enough to just cover the potatoes. Top with the grated cheese and sprinkle the nutmeg, bake for about 30 minutes. Remove the foil and bake for a further 15-20 minutes. Stick a knife into the centre to check that the potatoes are very soft - you should not feel anything remotely crunchy! If you do, cook for another 15-20 minutes. Remove from the oven and let the gratin sit for about 5 minutes before serving. Pic of in the intro.

Now let’s do the Boulangère, which is easier (the pic is in the intro)

4 large potatoes thinly sliced, 3 medium sweet potatoes thinly sliced, 2 onions peeled and thinly sliced, a few sage leaves, 300mls (half pint) vegetable stock.

Pre-heat your oven to 180c then grease a large oven proof dish.

You then layer the potatoes and onions and season each layer with salt and pepper.

Next add some chopped sage and pour the stock over. Cover the top of your dish with foil and place in the oven.

Cook for 2 hours remove the foil for the final 30 mins until the top goes golden and tender underneath.

You now have Boulangère potatoes.

Tags: Boulangere, Dauphinoise, Food, Potato Recipes
Posted in Food, Recipes |