Potatoes Allrottin

The things we come up with as kids. If only an alternative name for potatoes au gratin was the worse offense I committed while under the age of 12...

I have heard the word all my life, "gratin" or more likely "au gratin" and I always assumed it meant "to smother with cheese and make taste gross".

I blame Betty Crocker. Mom was not at fault. She had 4 kids to deal with over the years and the Potatoes Au Gratin was a moderately quick, cost effective, and fairly simple side dish to prepare. One that even a squirrelly hyper active spaz could make without much direction from Mom.

The big problem for me was that it was and still is made from dehydrated potatoes and powdered cheese.

Well tonight I finally got over my near life long avoidance of Potatoes au Gratin, by making the original or a close facsimile thereof.

Two smallish Russet potatoes sliced about an 1/8" thick
1 large Shitake, 1 average Crimini, 2 small Button Mushrooms sliced 1/4" thick
2-3 tbsp cream
1/4 cup loosely packed shredded cheese
2 tbsp panko bread crumbs
2 tsp bacon fat
kosher salt and pepper to taste

The mushrooms and potatoes should be sliced relatively uniform in size. It's easy to do with a mandolin but I like my good ol santoku.

Did you catch the subtle bragging about my knife skills?

Sauté the potato slices over high heat, until the potatoes are fork tender, with slices this thin it doesn't take long, about 5-8 minutes. They might take on a little color but not too much. Keep them moving in the pan so they don't stick or burn.

Turn on your broiler and put the rack at its highest level. Remove the potatoes from the pan leaving as much of the fat in the pan as possible. Reduce the heat to just above medium high. Add the mushrooms and quickly sauté until cooked through about 5 minutes. Keep the mushrooms moving to avoid burning. 
Add the potatoes back into pan and toss to mix wiht the mushrooms evenly. Add the cream and cook until it just starts to thicken.
The classic recipe calls for a Béchamel sauce but the plain cream works well for this quick method. 
Once the cream has thickened, top the potato mushroom mixture with the grated cheese and panko.

Note* I switched to a smaller oven safe pan for the final step. If you don't have oven safe (all metal) pan, pour into a small casserole dish or big ramekin then top with the cheese and panko.

I used 3 really nice cheeses, about 1 1/4 tbsp of each of the following: Lincolnshire Poacher, Pave de Nord and Pecorino Tuscano.
Broil for about 3 minutes. Until the cheese is completely melted and just starting to color. It might take more or less time in you oven so keep an eye the pan while it is under the broiler. Burning can happen fast. It should look something like this.

My plan was to serve with some nice sausages procured from a "real butcher". I wasn't impressed. I am all for leaner cuts and all that jazz but a sausage shouldn't be like dry white toast... It was a pretty sausage though. Very photogenic.
 

Not to toot my own horn but the potatoes rocked.

Never be afraid to try something you weren't fond of 25 years ago. You might be surprised.

Cheers

Chris