Potato and Blue Cheese Gratin

Today is my husband's birthday.  My birthday is in September.  This year we decided on a joint birthday present, a Canon T2i, and a joint celebratory dinner, Chef Anita Lo's Annisa, down in NYC.  These were both done in October, since it's the half-way point of both of our birthdays.  His request was that the kids help make his birthday dinner.  Well, they partially helped with the dessert, which we'll get to later.  But by dinner time they were off playing, and we were on our own to cook.  He requested steak and potatoes.  He was in charge of cooking the meat and I cooked the potatoes.  I have made the following recipe several times.  It is so simple yet so delicious!  We only put the blue cheese on half the potatoes since my daughter isn't a fan of blue cheese.  Just an FYI, these don't taste the same the next day, so if you want to have a little more, go for it!

Potato and Blue Cheese Gratin
Gourmet, December 2005

Tender, rich, and browned on top, this easy potato gratin gets loads of flavor from a very minimal amount of blue cheese that is added at the last minute.

Ingredients:
1 1/2 lb medium yellow-fleshed potatoes
1 cup heavy cream
1 garlic clove, finely chopped
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
1/3 cup crumbled blue cheese (1 oz)

Preparation:
Put oven rack in upper third of oven and preheat oven to 425°F.

Peel potatoes and slice 1/8 inch thick, then toss with cream, garlic, salt, and pepper in skillet. Cover with foil and roast until potatoes are very tender, about 25 minutes. Remove from oven and preheat broiler. Remove foil and sprinkle potatoes with cheese. Broil until top is browned, 2 to 3 minutes.

Family Rating: two thumbs up!  The kids loved these!