The Little Paris Kitchen (5 page)

To rinse or not to rinse the potatoes, that is the question that pops up in many
gratin dauphinois
recipes. It all depends whether you're using firm or baking potatoes. Baking ones will release their starch into the cream and make the gratin bind, whereas I prefer firm potatoes as they hold their shape better (no gratin mush for me). I like my gratin to be dense with crunchy, crisp edges, but you could always conduct some potato experiments of your own. All for research purposes, of course, not the fact that it's so delicious . . .

SERVES 6 AS A SIDE DISH

• 2 lb firm-fleshed potatoes (such as fingerling) • 1¼ cups milk • 1¼ cups heavy cream • a pinch of nutmeg • 1 tsp Dijon mustard • 1 tsp salt • 1 clove of garlic • 2 tbsp soft butter • chopped parsley or dill (optional)

Peel the potatoes and cut them into
⅛
-inch-thick slices. Place them in a pot with the milk, cream, nutmeg, mustard, and salt and simmer for 10 minutes.

Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 400°F. Cut the clove of garlic in half and rub the cut sides around the inside of a baking dish, then smear the butter around the inside of the dish.

Pour the potato and cream mix into the dish and spread the potatoes out evenly. Bake for 35–40 minutes or until golden and bubbling. Serve hot, topped with a sprinkling of chopped parsley, and a simple green salad.

Stir 7 ounces chopped smoked salmon, the finely grated zest of a lemon, and a handful of chopped dill into the potato mix before baking.

Preparation time: 15 minutes Cooking time: 45
–
50 minutes

The
tartiflette
recipe was the brainchild of the Reblochon cheese producers in the 1980s. With so many other French cheeses to compete with, they needed to find a way of making theirs more popular, and they did it with this cheesy potato gratin.

Reblochon is a cheese that comes from the Haute-Savoie in the Alps. It's made out of raw cow's milk and has a pungent aroma and nutty taste. If you can't find Reblochon, or you prefer a milder flavor, replace it with Brie and make a
Brieflette
(doesn't have quite the same ring, though, does it?).

Traditionally this dish is quite a heavy winter staple, but make it my way and you can even serve it on a hot day with a side salad.

SERVES 6 AS A SIDE DISH OR STARTER

• 1 tbsp soft butter • 1 lb firm-fleshed potatoes (such as fingerling) • 1 onion, finely chopped • 1 clove of garlic, finely chopped • 1 bay leaf • 7 oz lardons or cubes of smoked bacon • 6½ tbsp dry white wine • 8-oz piece of Reblochon cheese, cubed

Preheat the oven to 375°F and brush a 6-cup muffin tin with the butter. Peel the potatoes and use the julienne blade on a mandoline to make thin matchsticks (or slice by hand).

Put the onion, garlic, bay leaf, and lardons into a large nonstick frying pan and cook until the lardons are golden. Add the wine and reduce until only a couple of tablespoons of liquid remain. Stir in the potato matchsticks and take off the heat, then remove the bay leaf and stir in the Reblochon cubes.

Divide the potato mix between the cups in the muffin tin and bake for 15–20 minutes or until golden and bubbling. Serve immediately.

Preparation time: 30 minutes Baking time: 15
–
20 minutes

Béchamel
sauce with the addition of cheese (called
sauce Mornay
by the French) can only be a good thing. Coat any kind of vegetable with this sauce, and it'll get vegetable-hating kids licking their plates clean. A sneaky little trick I learned during my years working as a nanny.

The cauliflower can easily be replaced with broccoli, sliced zucchini, squash, or even potatoes.

SERVES 4–6 AS A SIDE DISH OR STARTER

For the Mornay (cheese) sauce:
2 tbsp butter • ¼ cup all-purpose flour • 2 cups milk, lukewarm • ¼ onion, skin removed • 1 clove • 1 bay leaf • a pinch each of white pepper and nutmeg • salt • 7 oz Gruyère, mature Comté, or Parmesan cheese, grated

• 3-lb head of cauliflower, trimmed and separated into florets (about 2 lb when trimmed) •
⅓
cup hazelnuts, finely chopped • 1 slice of extra-crunchy toast, roughly chopped

TO MAKE THE SAUCE:
Melt the butter in a large pan over a medium heat. Add the flour and beat hard until you have a smooth paste. Take off the heat and leave to cool for 2 minutes, then gradually add the milk, whisking constantly. Place the pan back over a medium heat, add the onion, clove, and bay leaf, and simmer gently for 10 minutes, whisking frequently. If the sauce becomes too thick, whisk in a little more milk. Finish the sauce by removing the onion, clove, and bay leaf, then add the pepper and nutmeg and salt to taste. Leave to cool slightly.

Steam the cauliflower using either a steamer basket or a colander fitted inside a pan. Cooking time depends on how you like your cauliflower cooked—I like mine on the crunchy side, which takes about 15 minutes.

Preheat the oven to 350°F.

Stir the cheese into the warm sauce (save a little to sprinkle on top of the gratin), then mix the sauce with the cauliflower and spoon into individual baking dishes.
*
Sprinkle with the rest of the cheese followed by the hazelnuts and toast crumbs. Bake for 10 minutes, then pop under a hot broiler for a few minutes to get a golden, bubbling crust. Serve immediately.

*
Or bake in one large dish for 20 minutes, followed by about 5 minutes under the broiler.

Preparation time: 30 minutes Cooking time: 30 minutes

My first job in Paris was taking care of two girls, Kami and Loïs. Cooking for French taste buds is daunting enough, and cooking for kids can be even harder, but this dish was a winner every time I made it. A great thing considering how easy it is to make, with ingredients that you're most likely to have on hand in the kitchen.

SERVES 4 AS A MAIN COURSE

For the
béchamel
sauce:
2 tbsp butter • ¼ cup all-purpose flour • 2 cups milk, lukewarm • ¼ onion, skin removed • 1 clove • 1 bay leaf • a pinch of nutmeg • salt and white pepper

• 10 oz (2½–3 cups) macaroni • 7 oz Gruyère, mature Comté, or Parmesan cheese,
*
grated

TO MAKE THE
BÉCHAMEL
SAUCE:
Melt the butter in a large pan over a medium heat. Add the flour and beat hard until you have a smooth paste. Take off the heat and leave to cool for 2 minutes, then gradually add the milk, whisking constantly. Place the pan back over a medium heat, add the onion, clove, and bay leaf, and simmer gently for 10 minutes, whisking frequently. If the sauce becomes too thick, whisk in a little more milk.

Finish the sauce by removing the onion, clove, and bay leaf, then adding the nutmeg and seasoning with salt and white pepper (although black pepper is fine if you don't mind the speckles). Leave to cool slightly.

Preheat the oven to 350°F. Cook the pasta according to package instructions.

Drain the pasta and tip into a large baking dish.

Save a handful of cheese to sprinkle on the top at the end, then mix the rest into the warm sauce.
**
Pour the sauce over the pasta and mix until the pasta is well coated. Sprinkle the rest of the cheese on top and bake for 20 minutes until bubbly and golden. Serve immediately.

Preparation time: 15 minutes Cooking time: 35 minutes