Martha's Scalloped Potatoes

  

   

Where do we put Martha Stewart in the Pantheon of chefs?  In our modern era of haute cuisine we may not think of her with Ripert, Ducasse or Keller.  In our current age of celebrity chefs we may not think of her with Batali, Flay or DeLaurentiis.  But there should be no doubt that she deserves a place in the Pantheon, to carry the metaphor, as one of the 12 Olympians of modern cooking.  Zeus, Poseidon, or Hades she may not be, but we can note that Dionysus, also one of the Olympians, is the god of wine, festivals and celebration.  We should also remember that not only has Martha been authoring cookbooks for a long time, one reason we may no longer think of her has a chef is her success in creating and diversifying her home living brand.  What’s more, Martha has been working many of our current themes for years: seasonal eating; healthy, fresh, simple ingredients; and simple mid-week meal menus.  Her cookbook What to Have for Dinner: 32 Easy Menus for Every Night of the Week published in 1996 does this to the nines.  This recipe for gratin potatoes is my go-to potato accompaniment for lamb chops.  It avoids the fat and calories of heavy cream and butter-based gratins.  Yet, it is still full of flavor with its use of stock, herbs and Gruyere.  Make it part of your fall and winter menus.  Serves 2.

   

Ingredients:

3 Yukon Gold potatoes, peeled and sliced to 1/8 inch thickness

1/3 cup grated Gruyere cheese

1/2 tsp olive oil

¼ tsp dried thyme leaves

¼ tsp salt

¼ cup chicken stock

   

Directions:

Heat oven to 400 degrees F.  Butter a small baking dish.  In a mixing bowl, combine the potatoes, half of the cheese, oil thyme and salt.  Arrange the potatoes in the baking dish, overlapping flat if desired.  Pour the stock over the potatoes and sprinkle the remaining cheese on top.  Bake the potatoes until tender and starting to brown, about 45 minutes.