Writing for the Sun Sentinel in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., Steve Petusevsky says one of the great pleasures of the dining table is anything prepared au gratin. Here's the rest of his piece:
As a kid, I longed for the evenings when my mother would make potatoes au gratin. For that matter, broccoli au gratin and cauliflower au gratin also thrilled me.
I think it was the tradition of picking at the golden brown crust on top, fighting with my brothers over the caramelized cheese and each of us trying to gradually move the casserole dish to his side of the table to get more.
Au gratin dishes are foods cooked in ovenproof casseroles topped with a crust made from breadcrumbs, cheese, cracker crumbs, grains or a mixture of these ingredients.
When I was at Culinary Institute of America, we usually made potatoes au gratin. The French make them by pouring heavy cream over thin-sliced potatoes that are sometimes mixed with onions, cheese and spices. When baked, the heavy cream reduces to a thick sauce as it combines with the natural starch from the potatoes to form a silky cream sauce.
There are, however, several ways to prepare au gratin dishes, but none of them are particularly healthful.
The best way I know to make the cream sauce is to use 2 percent milk thickened with cornstarch instead of a flour-and-butter-based roux. Or, you can substitute stock for the cream, but then your dish becomes more like Lyonnaise potatoes, which are wonderful, but different.
I give you a recipe for My Potatoes Au Gratin to which you can add blue cheese, chopped broccoli or cauliflower or just about anything you want. I like to use half stock and half cream to cut a bit of the fat. If you are feeling lazy, you can use bottled Alfredo sauce instead of making the Au Gratin Sauce, if you read the label and find its ingredients acceptable.
My Potatoes au Gratin
Of course, this recipe is for people who eat dairy products.
Au Gratin Sauce
2 ½ cups heavy cream, vegetable stock or a mixture of both
3 sprigs fresh thyme, chopped (about 1 tablespoon)
3 cloves garlic, minced
Cheese Topping
½ cup low-fat shredded Swiss cheese
¼ cup shredded parmesan cheese
¼ cup plain dry breadcrumbs, cracker crumbs or panko
2 teaspoons paprika
Potato Casserole
3 pounds red skin or Yukon gold, unpeeled and thinly sliced
1 large onion, thinly sliced
Salt and fresh-ground black pepper, to taste
To make sauce: Combine all ingredients.
To make topping: Combine all ingredients.
To make casserole: Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Grease a 9-by-13-inch baking dish with no-stick cooking spray.
Combine the potatoes and onions and layer a third of them in the pan. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Repeat layering twice more. Pour the sauce over the potatoes. Shake the casserole gently back and forth to evenly distribute the mixture. Sprinkle topping over all.
Cover with foil and bake in the center of the oven 45 minutes. Remove cover and bake 20 to 25 minutes until the topping is well browned and crispy, and the potatoes are tender. Makes 6 servings.
