Potato Gratin

Serves approx. 4

Ingredients:

- 4 tablespoon Butter
- 1 lb Yukon Gold Potatoes
- 3-5 Garlic Cloves, minced
- 1 cup Heavy Cream
- Fresh Thyme
- Gruyere Cheese, grated
- Bread Crumbs (optional)
- Kosher Salt and Freshly Ground Black Pepper

*Note that you don't need to follow this precisely. Sometimes I use parmesan or vermont cheddar. Leeks are nice between the layers, as are sauteed mushrooms.

Directions:

- Peel the potatoes, and slice very thinly using a mandoline. You can slice with a knife, but a mandoline will be much faster and uniform.
- Butter the bottom and sides of a casserole dish with about 1 tablespoon butter. Cut the remaining butter into small pieces.
- Arrange a layer of potatoes on the bottom of the casserole. Salt and pepper the potatoes.
- Sprinkle some butter pieces, minced garlic, and thyme over the layer.
- Add another layer of potatoes. Repeat salt, pepper, garlic, butter, and thyme. Repeat until you are done with the potatoes.
- At the final layer, pour the heavy cream all over. There should be enough heavy cream to squeeze through the layers when you press down with a spoon. But the potatoes should not literally be swimming in the cream.
- Top with grated cheese to your taste.
- Cover the gratin with aluminum foil and back for about 40 minutes. The potatoes should be translucent and the cream should bubble. Be sure to test the tenderness of the potato as it might require more baking time depending on the thickness of the slices.
- Remove the foil from the dish during the last 10 minutes of baking to nicely brown the cheese. You can also top with the breadcrumbs during the last 1o minutes.