CHOW Thanksgiving: Potato Parsnip Gratin

Potato Parsnip Gratin

Total Time: 1 hour
Active Time: 30 minutes
Makes: 8 servings

What to Buy: Purchase medium-sized parsnips that are heavy and firm, with no splitting.

Equipment: A good quality mandoline is indispensable in a professional kitchen and useful here. Watch your fingers: Hold ingredients to be sliced cupped in the palm of your hand, not the fingertips. For nice, even slices, apply more forward than downward pressure. (Too much pressing down will yield vegetables thicker on one side than the other, as well as feed your fingers into the blade.)

Note: To make the roasted garlic puree, peel and smash 6 garlic cloves and place them on a square of aluminum foil. Add a splash of olive oil, fold the foil to make a packet, and roast at 350°F until soft 15 to 20 minutes.

FOR THE GRATIN

Note: To make the roasted garlic puree, peel and smash 6 garlic cloves and place them on a square of aluminum foil. Add a splash of olive oil, fold the foil to make a packet, and roast at 350°F until soft 15 to 20 minutes.

Preheat oven to 425°F. Lightly butter a 10-inch (round or oval), 2-inch deep gratin dish or pie plate and set aside. Peel and trim the potatoes and parsnips. Slice the parsnips crosswise 1/8-inch thick rounds, pat them dry, and place in a large mixing bowl. Slice the potatoes crosswise into 1/8-inch thick rounds Toss the vegetables together and set aside.

Warm the cream in a small saucepan over medium heat until hot but not boiling; remove from heat. Whisk in the garlic puree (oil and all) and salt, and continue whisking until well-blended. Season with nutmeg and pepper to taste, then return the pan to low heat.

Place half the vegetable mixture in the bottom of the prepared gratin dish. Dot with 2 tablespoons of the butter and sprinkle with ¼ cup of the cheese. Top with the remaining vegetable mixture, dot with the remaining butter and sprinkle with the remaining cheese. Pour the warm cream over the top.

Cover the dish with foil and bake until the vegetables are tender when tested with a skewer or roasting fork, and the top is bubbling (about 35 minutes). Remove the foil and sprinkle breadcrumbs evenly over the gratin, pressing them down lightly with the back of a spatula so they absorb some of the moisture and don’t brown too fast. Return the gratin to the oven and cook for about 10 minutes more, until the top layer of cheese and breadcrumbs is golden brown. Remove the gratin from the oven and allow to rest for 5 minutes before serving.

-Adapted from CHOW Holiday 2004 and contributed by Charlie Palmer