Dauphinoise potatoes

This is my go to side dish. It has the winning combination of being super easy and tastes incredible.


It can be made ahead which is always a plus in my books. Who wants to be chopping potatoes when everyone's sat down for dinner? 

While I would never claim Dauphinoise to be 'guilt free', these are definitely lower on the scale of guilt. I took all the cream out and used reduce fat Crème fraiche, so really it's like eating a salad!


The ingredients are nothing special and you'd probably have most of these in your kitchen already. 
I also added in a little fresh thyme as I was cooking which I will be doing every time in the future!


The best way to slice the potatoes is to use the large slicing slot on a standard box grater. It takes about 15 seconds to do each potato and takes out all the hassle.

I just placed the potatoes in the baking dish as I sliced them, with a small sprinkling of sea salt and thyme between each layer.
As I was making the sauce I felt it was too thick, so added in a good glug of semi skimmed milk to loosen the sauce. Ideally you'd want the sauce to the consistency of thick soup.
I grated on about 30g of fresh Parmesan after I poured the sauce on top.


RECIPE:
Makes a side dish enough to serve six
Preparation time: 15 minutes
Cooking time: 1 hour

Ingredients:
300ml Crème fraîche
30ml semi skimmed milk
1 finely chopped onion
2 cloves minced garlic
4-5 medium white potatoes
8 sprigs fresh thyme
30g grated Parmesan

Method:
Finely slice the potatoes using the largest side of your grater.
Layer the potatoes into a dish and sprinkle a pinch of salt and a few thyme leaves on each level.
In a small pan sauté the onions and garlic in a knob of butter until softened. 
Tip in the Crème fraiche and bring to a medium heat.
Check to see the consistency and, if necessary, add a dash of milk. 
Pour the sauce over the potatoes and grate on the Parmesan.

At this stage you can put it to one side, ready to be cooked later on.

Get the oven to 180C/Gas mark 4 before putting the potatoes in.
Cook for around 1 hour, or until the potatoes are really soft when you stick a knife into the dish.

Just cut the dish into six segments and serve with a fish slice.

Serve with my breaded chicken and some steamed kale for an easy and stress free dinner!

Have you had a go at my dauphinoise potatoes? Let me know!

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