POTATO & SPRING VEGETABLE GRATIN

By jarren

Ingredients

• Gratin:
• 4 strips bacon
• 1 tsp olive oil
• 1 small bulb fennel, trimmed, cored and Thinly sliced
• 2 carrots, thinly sliced on the diagonal
• 8 yellow-fleshed potatoes, peeled and cut in 1/4" thick slices
• 1 1/2 cups sodium-reduced chicken broth
• 1 cup whipping cream
• 1/2 cup milk
• 3 sprigs fresh thyme
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 1/2 tsp each salt and pepper
• 3 tbsp flour
• 1 cup shredded Gruyere cheese
• Topping:
• 1 cup fresh bread crumbs
• 1/2 cup shredded Gruyere cheese
• 2 tbsp butter, melted

Details

Servings 8
Preparation time 35mins
Cooking time 60mins

Preparation

Step 1

Gratin:

In large non-stick skillet, cook bacon over medium-high heat, turning once, until crisp, about 4 minutes. Remove to paper towel-lined plate to drain. Chop bacon into 1/2" pieces. Set aside.

Reserving 2 tsp of the fat, drain pan; wipe clean. Return reserved fat to pan. Add oil; heat over medium-high heat. Cook fennel and carrots, stirring and adding water, 1 tbsp at a time, if fennel begins to stick to pan, just until fennel is softened, about 7 minutes. Remove to plate.

In same pan, bring potatoes, broth, cream, milk, thyme, garlic, salt and pepper to boil over medium-high heat. Reduce heat to medium; simmer until potatoes are almost tender, about 10 minutes.

Whisk flour with 1/4 cup water. Move potatoes to 1 side of pan; whisk flour mixture into opposite side until smooth. Add bacon and fennel mixture; cook, stirring, until potatoes are fork-tender, about 2 minutes. Discard thyme.

Spoon half of the potato mixture into greased 9x13" baking dish; sprinkle with Gruyere. Scrape remaining potato mixture over top. (Make-ahead: Let cool completely; cover with foil. Refrigerate for up to 24 hours. Reheat, covered, on bottom rack of 425F oven for 45 minutes before continuing with recipe).

Topping:

Stir together bread crumbs, Gruyere and butter. Sprinkle over potato mixture.

Bake on bottom rack of 425F oven until top is golden, about 15 minutes. Let stand for 10 minutes before serving.