Gratin Dauphinois

 

Ingredients

    1 lb yellow potatoes
    1 whole garlic clove, peeled
    10 oz.  heavy cream
     A little butter for greasing
     1/4 cup butter for topping
     Salt and pepper

Preparation

Preheat the oven to 300°F(150 C).
Peel the yellow potatoes, and slice them into very thin strips.  This is where the mandolin would come in handy, about 1/16th of an inch.  Run the potatoes under cool water, and get all the excess water off, best to let them sit on a towel.
Season a shallow earthenware dish by rubbing the garlic clove into the surface.  The shallower you layer the potatoes, the better.  They are more likely to all crisp up this way.  Then butter the dish.  Layer the dried potato slices onto the dish.  Pour in the heavy cream, and top with a dash of salt and pepper.  Place small pieces of butter speratically across the top.
Place the dish into the oven and cook for 90 minutes.  In the last ten minutes, bring the temperature up to 425°F(220 C) to get that beautiful golden brown top.