Lasagna Dauphinois

Lasagna Dauphinois

INGREDIENTS:

2 lb /1 kg starchy potatoes (Note 1)
½ clove unpeeled garlic
4 tablespoons butter, chopped into small cubes (Note 3)
1 teaspoon salt
⅛ teaspoon pepper
1½ cups grated gruyere cheese (or tasty or cheddar)
1½ cups cream
2 tsp thyme leaves (optional - but highly recommended)

INSTRUCTIONS:

Preheat oven to 350F/180C.
Rub a baking dish or round skillet (square 21 x 21 cm / 8 x 8" or a round 23 cm / 9" diameter) with the cut garlic, then smear with 1 tbsp of butter.
Peel the potatoes and slice them ⅛"/3 mm thick. Or use a slicer - makes the job much faster!
Spread ⅓ of the potatoes in the dish, then scatter over ⅓ of the cream, salt, pepper, cheese, thyme and butter (Note 3).
Repeat for the 2nd and third layer, finishing with the cheese.
Cover with lid or foil, and bake for 1 hour to 1 hr 15 min or until the potatoes is soft (use a knife to test), then remove the foil and bake for a further 10 until the top is bubbly and golden. Rest for 10 minutes before serving.


NOTES:
1. You need to use starchy potatoes as they break down when cooked, becoming nice and fluffy on the inside and golden and crunchy on the top. The best to use are Russet (common in the US), Dutch creams, King Edwards or red delight. However, great all rounders like golden delight, Caliban, red rascal and Sebago (popular in Australia) still works great.

I use Sebago which are the brushed potatoes you can get from any supermarket in Australia (ie. the ones with dirt on them). If you are based in the US, a great all rounder to use is Russet which I understand is one of the most widely used potatoes in the US.

2. To make ahead: After trying various ways during the course of 2016, I have found that the best way to make ahead is to assemble it all EXCEPT for the final layer of cheese. Cover with foil and bake until potato is soft. Let cool then drizzle with a bit of extra cream, top with cheese, refrigerate until required. Reheat covered in foil in a 180C/350F oven for 20 - 35 min or until hot, then remove foil and bake until cheese is golden. To speed things up you can microwave it then pop it in the oven (this is dense so takes quite a while to reheat in the oven, depends on the depth of baking dish you use).

3. You could just melt the butter and drizzle. I've written the recipe the way it is traditionally made.