From the Garden: Recipe for Oven Roasted Potato Gratin with Bacon and Cream

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New russet potato

These days, my cooking style leans heavily toward whimsy.  Rarely do I plan a recipe or meal ahead of time other than ethereal thoughts.  (Which is why you will seldom see a holiday recipe on this blog that is posted before the actual holiday in any given year.)

And while it's true that I wake up most mornings thinking about what I'll cook for dinner, they are wispy thoughts, changing often during the day, usually inspired by what's directly in front of me - say, a freshly dug potato the proportions of which could easily feed two people.

Garden-fresh China rose garlic and sweet onions

So when I pulled said potato from the ground the other day, not so much visions of a meal appeared as floating bubbles containing words, tastes and smells and all I knew was that that particular very large potato would be combined with also-just-pulled onions and garlic.  Simple, straightforward food.


Bacon came into play when dicing changed to slicing which conjured up layers; cream, as onions and garlic were sizzling in bacon fat.


I know.  Bacon fat.  Cream.  Forgive me.    This is whimsy at its delicious worst.

Oven roasted garden potatoes with bacon and cream

Eat too much of this and it will expand your waistline.  [Suggestion: serve it to a crowd, guaranteeing no leftovers.]

Just dug, first-of-the-season russet potatoes have a thin skin (at least in my garden), are drier than the more waxy, less absorbent Yukon golds, and combine beautifully with any liquid that you want the potato to absorb, giving back creamy goodness on your plate. I recommend them in a dish like this.

The potatoes are growing just behind those wild onion stalks

Am I terrible to post a hot, oven-centric recipe like this in July?  Not in my kitchen.  The "summer" months of coastal far-northern California are foggy and cool - sometimes darn cold.  My zucchini struggle. The potatoes love it.


Oven Roasted Potato Gratin with Onions, Garlic, Bacon and Cream
Recipe by Christine Hills
Serves 8-12 small slices
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Ingredients:

• 1 or 2 large new russet potatoes, scrubbed and sliced crosswise in 1/8" to 1/4" thickness
• 1 medium sweet onion such as Vidalia or Walla Walla, peeled, cut in half from stalk to roots, then thinly sliced into half moons
• 6 cloves fresh garlic, peeled and thinly sliced lengthwise
• 6 slices bacon, cooked to well done, save the bacon fat!
• 1/2 to 2/3 cup cream
• Sea salt and freshly cracked black peppercorns to taste

Preparation:
Set the oven to 350-degrees.
Prep the potatoes, onions and garlic per the descriptions above and set aside.
Start a large cast iron skillet or other heavy 12-inch skillet over high heat and add the bacon. When the bacon fat starts to melt turn the heat to medium-high and cook, turning over halfway through, until just crispy.  Remove the bacon to paper towels to drain.  Pour all but 1 tablespoon of bacon fat from the skillet, reserving the bacon fat, and return the skillet to the heat.
Add the sliced onions and garlic to the pan and sauté over medium heat until soft and just beginning to get golden.  Remove them to a plate and set aside.
Add a bit more bacon fat to the skillet and warm it, if necessary, until fully liquid then remove the pan from the heat.
Place a layer of sliced potatoes in the bottom of the skillet.  I usually lay them down in overlapping rings beginning at the outside edge of the skillet and working to the center. Salt and pepper liberally then put down a second layer of potatoes. 
Spread the onion mixture evenly over the potatoes and sprinkle with salt and pepper.
Do another layer of potatoes over the onions and yet another layer if you have enough potatoes.  Again, salt and pepper liberally but to your own taste.  Potatoes love salt.
Pour the cream around the edge of the skillet all the way around and then over the top of the potatoes.
Cut or crumble the bacon into small pieces and sprinkle these over the top.
Cover the skillet with a lid or foil and roast for 40-60 minutes or until all the cream is absorbed and the potatoes come apart when nudged with a fork.
Remove the lid and roast 7-10 minutes more to brown the top.
Slice into wedges to serve.

• If I don't have my son Josh's home cured bacon on hand, I use Niman Ranch applewood smoked, un-cured bacon which may be found at almost any well stocked grocery store.
• I use Strauss Family Creamery organic heavy cream in redeemable glass bottles.

[That whimsy part I was talking about? - where I change my mind mid-chop/slice/or dice and, whoops!, go off in another direction? - that can be a bit disconcerting to friends or family members helping out in the kitchen .  (Which, I suppose, is why I prefer to cook by myself.)  Although Mr CC, who is quite used to my culinary antics after almost 30 years of wedded bliss, has become quite the sous chef, able to deftly change directions at my whim - and he doesn't give me grief about it.]

Copyright © 2005-2012, Christine Cooks. All rights reserved

Savory Three Cheeses Flan with Homecured Applewood Smoked Diced Bacon and Warm Bacon Vinaigrette on a Bed of Baby Arugula

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To be quite honest, I had a hard time deciding which photo to lead with here.

I've got three things going on, not the least of which is homecured, applewood smoked bacon made by son Josh in his Sacramento backyard.

I think that's worthy of a post all its own and I've been bugging him to be a guest blogger.

Anyone want to chime in and nudge him a bit?

I mean, the guy goes out and bags an elk, a deer, a couple of pigs, some ducks, a few geese, brings them home and makes his own steaks, roasts, sausage, bacon, confit . . .

Josh's home cured bacon is a beautiful thing

He asked me a while back if I knew a good book on curing meats. Charcuterie was the first one that came to mind so he went out and bought a copy and now there's no stopping the man.

Not that I'm complaining; I've got his pork bacon and duck breasts in my freezer. You will hear no complaining from this mom.

Then there's the flan.

Oh my. Can I toot my own horn?

Ricotta, chevre, and parmigiano reggiano cheeses bound together with a few of my hens' eggs and some lightly sautéed leeks, sitting on a bed of baby arugula, drizzled with - number three! - a warm bacon vinaigrette, then topped with bits of Josh's homecured bacon.

Heaven on a plate.

You see my dilemma. I couldn't divide them up into their separate recipes. Hence the long title.

Make this for dinner some night. It takes very little time to prepare (except for the bacon curing part) and it's elegant as all get out.

And if you're not as lucky as I am to have a meat curing son, a good bacon such as Niman Ranch will do as a substitute. (But really, it won't be the same.)

Savory Three Cheeses Flan with Homecured Applewood Smoked Diced Bacon and Warm Bacon Vinaigrette on a Bed of Baby Arugula
Christine's original recipe with gratitude to her son Josh and his charcuterie skills
(print recipe)
Ingredients:
1 15-ounce tub fresh organic ricotta cheese
4-ounces fresh chevre (goat cheese)
2/3 cup parmigiano reggiano, finely grated
1 3/4 teaspoons kosher salt, divided
generous grinds of black peppercorns
2 large eggs, lightly beaten
1 fat leek, white and light green part only, about 6-inches long, quartered lengthwise and thinly sliced
1-2 tablespoons dry white wine
Olive oil and unsalted butter for the pan
6 pieces thick bacon (homecured is best), 2-inches in length
1 teaspoon (heaping) good Dijon mustard
1 tablespoon golden balsamic vinegar
2 cups baby arugula, washed and spun dry

Preparation: (See Cook's Notes)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees with a rack positioned in the center of the oven.

Spray the insides of 6 4-ounce custard cups with a thin film of non-stick spray then wipe with a paper towel. Set in a large roasting pan.

Heat about a teaspoon each olive oil and unsalted butter in a skillet over medium-low flame.

Add the sliced leeks and sauté gently until they are softened. Adjust the heat so they don't burn.

Allow the leeks to cook until they are tender, about 5 minutes.

Add the white wine to the skillet, stir and sauté until the pan is just dry. Remove from the heat and toss with a pinch or two of kosher salt.

Remove the cooked leeks to a plate to cool a bit.

Meanwhile, combine the three cheeses, pepper and 1 1/2 teaspoons salt by hand in a medium bowl until blended.

Add the beaten eggs and stir until they are fully incorporated.

When the leeks aren't screaming hot, add them to the cheese mixture and stir well.

Divide the mixture evenly between the 6 cups.

Place the cups in a large roasting pan and pour hot water into the pan so that it comes to about halfway up the sides of the custard cups.

Bake in the oven for 35 to 45 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center of a flan comes out clean and the top is lightly golden brown.

Remove the flans from the water bath and allow to cool on a wire rack until they can be handled easily.

While the flans are enjoying their hot tub, heat a skillet (cast iron can't be beat for this) on medium high then add the pieces of bacon and let them sizzle until they are cooked through and a beautiful mahogany brown on both sides.

Remove the pan from the heat and use tongs to remove the bacon to paper towels to drain. (Reserve the bacon fat in the skillet, off heat.)

Stack the bacon pieces on top of each other and cut into 1/2-inch dice (see photos above). Set aside.

Whisk the mustard into the bacon fat in the skillet then whisk in the vinegar until the mixture is smooth and thickened.

To assemble:

Divide the arugula between 6 plates.

Run a knife around the edge of a flan then place a spatula over the flan while tipping the cup over the center of the arugula. Give the custard cup a shake, allowing the flan to drop onto the spatula. Gently position the flan on the arugula. Repeat with the rest of the flans on their individual plates.

Drizzle the vinaigrette here and there on the arugula and over the top of the flan then garnish with the bits of bacon.

What a way to have your bacon and eggs.

Cook's Notes:

Aside from the oven baking time, none of the tasks above takes much time to prepare. Keeping the individual parts warm before assembly is key to the success of the dish so work as quickly as you can when the flans come out of the oven.

Enjoy!

Copyright © 2005-2009, Christine Cooks. All rights reserved