French Scalloped Potatoes

With Thanksgiving coming up, I wanted to share one of my all-time favorite comfort foods. It goes great with turkey and ham! This recipe is a hybrid of a few different ones I’ve tried over the years and, I like to think, combines the best elements of all of them.

For this recipe you will need:

  2 1/4 lbs potatoes
  2-3 cups cream
  1 bay leaf
  at least 3 tbsp fresh herbs, finely chopped (this time I used rosemary, thyme, sage, and marjoram)
  1-2 tbsp butter, softened
  3 garlic cloves, very finely chopped
  1 cup grated gruyère
  salt and freshly ground black pepper

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Cut the potatoes into fairly thing slices.

Put the potatoes into a large saucepan and pour over just enough cream to cover the potatoes. Add the salt, pepper, and bay leaf. Slowly bring to a boil over medium heat and simmer for about 10 minutes. Add the fresh herbs and simmer for an additional 5 minutes until the potatoes just start to soften, but are not completely cooked, and the cream has thickened.

Generously butter a 2 liter/8 cup shallow baking dish and sprinkle the garlic over the base.

Spoon the potatoes and cream into the baking dish, alternating with some of the gruyère. Sprinkle remaining gruyère on top.

Bake for about 45 minutes to 1 hour until the cream is absorbed and the top is a deep golden brown.

PS I’ve really enjoyed the tips I’ve gotten for the past few recipes I’ve posted. Keep ’em coming!