Quick, Creamy, Cast Iron Pan Potato Gratin

Quick, Creamy, Cast-Iron Pan Potato Gratin

This winter is becoming known as the winter that dragged on into summer. Honestly, this time last year I was planting stuff, and this year I haven't even raked anything yet. I want to be cooking and writing about spring food, but, since it's snowing (again), we're still craving soothing, creamy, cozy food. I don't know about you, but right about now, my patience is wearing thin with long drawn out recipes, and I just want to be able to grill. Outside. On our Big Green Egg. Even Chuck, who's not exactly Mr. Nature Boy, is starting to hate this icy, gray weather.

We had to settle for a flank steak grilled indoors, our nod to spring, and backed it up with a fast version of a potato gratin, like scalloped potatoes, made in a cast iron skillet from start to finish, in less than an hour. This should serve 4, but these are so good we polished them off between the two of us. Too good to leave any leftovers.

You could use any sort of frying pan, not just cast iron, as long as it is ovenproof and about 9" or 10" in diameter.  Cast iron, however does the best job, and has enough rustic charm to come to the table. Lodge makes great pre-seasoned pans, made here in American that you should start collecting, because no kitchen is complete without a few good cast iron pans. While the gratin bakes, you can grill your steak, or relax with a glass of wine and watch the tulips grow. If its spring where you are. If you're here, just watch it snow.

Note: A mandoline will make slicing the potatoes and onions fast and easy. I recommend this one as its simple to adjust and clean, and stays sharp thanks to the ceramic blade. Just remember to use the hand guard. And if you have a Microplane zester / grater, use it on the cheese to get a fine cloud of cheese to spread evenly over the top of the gratin.You can make this gluten free by omitting the flour, but the end result won't be as creamy.

Quick Creamy One-Pan Potato Gratin

1T unsalted butter
4 med - large Yukon Gold potatoes, peeled and sliced 1/8" thick
1 small yellow onion, peeled, and sliced into 1/8" rounds
3T Wondra or AP (All Purpose) flour
1-1/2 cups unsalted chicken stock
1/2 cup creme fraiche or heavy cream
salt, nutmeg and fresh ground pepper
1 oz, Parmesan or Romano finely grated

Preheat the oven to 400ºF. In a 9" or 10" ovenproof skillet or frying pan, melt the butter over medium heat. Into the pan, place 1/2 of the potato slices in concentric circles covering the bottom of the pan evenly, using broken bits and off-slices as needed to fill in, saving the best looking potato slices for the top layer. 

Lightly salt, add a few grinds of black pepper and a light dusting of nutmeg. Next, dust the flour evenly over the potato slices. Wondra is easier to use because it won't clump, but AP will work.

Spread all of the slice onions over the flour layer, and then top with the remaining half of the potatoes. Again sprinkle with salt, pepper and nutmeg. 

Mix the creme fraiche or the cream and the stock together, and pour evenly over the top. Bring to a simmer over medium heat, partially cover with a lid or foil, and cook about 10 minutes, until the potatoes are just beginning to soften. Do not boil hard, or it'll boil over. Remove the lid, and sprinkle the cheese over the top, and place the pan, uncovered in the oven. Bake for about 40 minutes, until the potatoes are tender, and the top is browned.

First & Last in the Garden: Swiss Chard Gratin with Mushrooms & Goat Cheese

Almost done; the last of last year's Swiss Chard.

There is really no beginning and or ending in a vegetable garden, at least not in mine. The climate here allows me to plant some things in the Fall for the next year, like garlic, and protect some things, like Swiss chard, from the cold so we can get some quick pickings in the Spring before it goes to seed. Nice because this year’s planting is still seedlings, too small to eat unless I demolish the whole thing for one small salad.

Baby chard is delicious, but I like the big leaves, and the fact that it’s biennial, so you can get a bit of a second season out of it before it bolts to seed. It thrives in the heat unlike most tender greens, and is less strongly flavored than kale or collards. It’s really a good “entry level” green if you are trying to launch into eating a wider range of greens but worry about strong flavors. If you like spinach, you’ll like Swiss chard. Swiss chard, like spinach, is in the beet family, and if you eat it plain, you can taste the delicious similarities.

Yesterday I saw the whorls coming up that will produce the seeds so it was time to yank out the plants, and harvest the remains of last year’s chard. Really, it’s the last thing out from last season, and the first thing I was able to start picking in late February, thanks to the mild winter and the straw mulch. After all was said and done and dug out, I had about 6 lbs., a gift from last year’s garden.

This gratin is very much like a crustless quiche, with a tender custard holding together the savory mixture of chard,  red onions and goat cheese. Would make a good vegetarian main dish, or a nice lunch with some pickled vegetables on the side and a glass of white wine. It is also gluten free.

Swiss chard and goat cheese gratin.
Good right out of the oven or at room temperature.

Swiss Chard Gratin with Mushrooms and Goat Cheese

Serves 6

3 lb. Swiss chard

2 T extra virgin olive oil

8 oz. baby portabella mushrooms sliced

1 small red onion, diced

2 garlic cloves, minced

Salt

Pepper

1-1/2 cups half & half or plain soy creamer

1 egg

1 egg yolk

½ teas grated nutmeg

5 oz. soft goats cheese (chèvre), crumbled

Bring a large pot of well-salted water to boil. Pull  or cut the thick stems from the Swiss chard and save for another use (cook separately, or add to your compost). Wash the leaves well, drain and blanch in the boiling water about 4 minutes until limp. Drain well, press out as much water as possible. Chop them coarsely and set aside.

Preheat the oven to 350°F and cooking spray or oil a shallow 2 qt. baking dish. In a big sauté pan, heat the olive oil until it ripples, then add the mushrooms, the red onion, and the garlic, and cook until the mushrooms have given up their juices and are starting to brown. Add salt and pepper lightly to taste. Turn off the heat and stir in the reserved cooked chard. Let cool a few moments, and then place the chard mixture in the baking dish, spreading evenly over the bottom. Crumble about 1/3 of the goat cheese over the chard and mix in lightly.

In a medium bowl, whisk together the half & half or soy creamer, the egg, the egg yolk and the nutmeg until completely blended. Pour evenly over the chard mixture in the baking dish, tilting the pan to even out the mixture if necessary.

Except for the raw egg in there,
the unbaked gratin looks good enough to eat!

Crumble the remaining goat cheese over the top, stir here and there with a spoon to bring some egg mixture to the top, and bake in the preheated oven for 40 minutes. Switch the oven to broil and cook for another 3-5 minutes to brown the top. Serve hot or at room temperature.