Rosemary Potatoes au Gratin

5 from 9 votes

Your holiday table needs these potatoes au gratin infused with delicious rosemary flavour and made even creamier with Comte cheese!

Prep Time15

Cook Time45

Total Time1

Course: side

Cuisine: British

Keyword: potatoes au gratin

Servings:

Preheat the oven to 450F/220C
Slice your washed and unpeeled potatoes thinly with a mandoline slicer or with a sharp knife and put them in a bowl filled with cold water, set aside.
Pour cream in a small saucepan and add fresh rosemary, a bay leaf, salt and a peeled garlic clove cut lengthwise. Slowly bring it to a boil to allow the cream to get infused with herbs and garlic. It should take about 7-10 minutes on low heat.
Butter a 9" round pan and arrange well-drained potatoes slices in layers. Then pour hot cream over the potatoes while reserving 1/4 cup of the cream. Cover with foil and cook in the preheated oven for 45 minutes.
Take the foil off and test for doneness with a knife, which should pierce them easily. Change the oven setting to broil/grill. Pour the rest of the cream over the potatoes and sprinkle with grated cheese. Broil/grill for 2 more minutes until the cheese is bubbly and slightly browned on top.

In order for creamy potato gratin to cook well, the potatoes have to be sliced thinly and evenly. Using a mandolin or food processor will make this much easier and faster.

Some cooks insist that only starchy/floury potatoes work for this recipe but I disagree. The argument is that the starch in the potatoes helps to thicken the sauce and it does. However, as long as they are cooked in herb infused heavy cream and not milk, the sauce will not be watery.

I used Comté cheese because it's a personal favourite. Other sharp cheese will work, such as gruyere, Emmental, and aged cheddar.

The rosemary in the cream sauce can be replaced with other flavourings such as thyme or bay leaf.