Potato Bake
Needed:
1 potato per person (at least)
1 onion
1 small container of cream (I think that means 250ml)
lots of grated cheese
salt & pepper
bread to make bread crumbs.
Method:
Slice potatoes thinly, approx 3-5mm thick. If pre-preparing, soak potatoes in water.
Slick onion thinly, as above.
Grease the bottom of a casserole dish
Create a layer of potaotes, followed by some salt and pepper
Create a layer of onion
repeat, finishing with a layer of potatoes.
Dump a 'liberal' amount of grated cheese on top of all this.
Sprinkle breadcrumbs on top of the cheese to make the top 'crispy'.
Pour in cream, either until container empty, or until 1/2 way up the casserole dish.
Bake in oven for approx 30 - 45 min.
Issues I had:
Well, I didn't know how hot to set the oven. Our oven is notoriously horrid, so we set it at 400F, and baked it for 45 minutes. This was definitely not nearly enough - the potatoes weren't fully cooked, neither was the onion. The breadcrumbs over-cooked and absorbed all the cheese. It was a yummy dish, but not up to my memories.
Variations I plan:
1) removal/ reduction of onion.
2) addition of more cheese layers
3) baking for longer time at lower temperatures
4) we'll see what else I can come up with!
I made too much last night, so will experiment with smaller potatoes sometime in the weeks to come. Fingers crossed! Anyone have any cooking advice for how to improve?
Nice work. Your aunt's potatoes are awesome, and I am totally stealing this.
ReplyDeleteSuggestions:
- Don't remove the onion. Just reduce the amount. It will be bland otherwise.
- More cheese is not always better. try a sharper cheese for increased cheese flavour without making it into an oily mess.
- Try setting it on a lower rack in the over to avoid prematurely browning the breadcrumbs, while simultaneously increasing the heat to the potatoes.
Ya, I put in too much onion this time, and the combination of that and the lack of cooking made it not a great outcome, especially with my onion allergy.
ReplyDeleteThe cheese got all soaked up into the breadcrumbs this time, it was as if they were cheezie breadcrumbs on potato.. so I thought a bit more cheese might be a good thing? Sharper cheese is a good idea, as this time I used marble.
Lower rack = brilliant. I think I'd do lower rack, slightly lower temperature and longer cooking.