Slayered Potatoes {Gluten-free}

Slayered potatoes… huh, wha??!  Yep, you read right, slayered.  It’s my boyfriend’s genius word.  They’re layered and they’re scalloped, so they’re slayered.  I just had to roll with it… 🙂

I hesitate to call these scalloped potatoes since usually unhealthy and heavy come to mind.  That these are not.  But they do take on the same flavor and have that delicious savory yumminess of traditional scalloped potatoes.

I had a plethora of potatoes lying around my kitchen, so I pulled them out, started slicing, and came up with this.  I just recently bought a springform pan at Marshall’s and was dying to use it… I love new gadgets and toys!  This turned out to be a perfect way.

If you’re cooking for a larger-sized crowd, you could keep filling the layers until they reach the top of the pan to add more- I actually think that would look lovely, I just didn’t need that much food this time 🙂  If making more, then double the onion sauce to match the increase in potatoes…

 It’s all about the sweet potato/russet blend: heaven I tell you, heaven.  If you have other potatoes, toss them in, too… but whatever you do, make sure you add some sweet potatoes to the layers/slayers!

(I first fell in love with the sweet potato-Russet combo when I had my aunt’s scalloped potatoes that uses both… recipe HERE.)

Also key, fresh herbs.  A little goes a long way 🙂

See how simple… some potatoes, some cheese, some herbs 🙂

4-5 potatoes (mix of sweet, russet, yellow, etc)

1/2 onion (1 cup chopped)

2-3 garlic cloves (1 tbsp minced)

3/4 tsp chopped fresh thyme

1/2 tsp chopped fresh rosemary

1/2 cup milk

1/2 cup grated cheese (any variety you like- I use a blend of cheddar and Monterey jack)

1/4 cup fresh parmesan cheese (grated or shaved)

1/4 tsp salt

1/4 tsp pepper

1 tbsp ghee (or butter)

1 tsp olive oil

extra sprinkle salt & pepper

topping: pinch of paprika & sprinkle parmesan cheese (the powdery/grated kind if you have it)

*A springform pan (pictured below) is helpful if you have one- they make things so much easier!  If not, just use a 9-inch pie pan and cut the potatoes out like you would a pie 🙂

Preheat oven to 425 degrees

Roughly chop onion and mince garlic

In a small fry pan, heat ghee and olive oil over medium heat until melted

Then add onion along with 1/4 tsp salt and 1/4 tsp pepper

Cook onions for about 5 minutes, until lightly translucent

Reduce heat to low and continue cooking for about 10 minutes, until the onions are soft and begin to caramelize

Meanwhile, prep fresh herbs…

I find it easiest to cut rosemary leaves with kitchen shears or scissors- that way you can get teeny little pieces without the stem

For the thyme, simply run your fingers against the stem from top to bottom- the leaves should fall off easily (if they don’t, you may be going the wrong direction, so try the other way!)

When onions are ready, add minced garlic and herbs

Stir and let cook for about 5 minutes longer

While the onion/garlic/herb mixture is doing its thing, you can begin preparing the potatoes

Thinly slice washed potatoes as evenly as you can- that way they’ll cook evenly, too 🙂

Continue until all are cut

Grease the bottom and sides of the pan

Arrange sliced potatoes around the pan, including the sides

Continue layering until you have all of the potatoes in the pan except enough for one thin top layer

Sprinkle generously with salt and pepper

Now put the finishing touches on the onion sauce…

Add milk to the mixture, stirring until mixed through

Add grated cheese

Stir until melted

Then pour the sauce over the potato layers, spreading evenly to cover the top layer

Top the entire layer with remaining potatoes

Sprinkle with shaved or grated fresh parmesan and top with a little dusting of paprika (optional-for color)

Place in preheated oven and bake for 30 minutes, covered with foil

After 30 minutes, remove foil

Sprinkle potatoes with a little dusting of parmesan, the powdery kind- it will help create a nice browned topping…

After another 30 minutes (it will bake for one hour total), remove from oven

It should be done if you cut the potatoes thinly, but you might want to double-check just in case some were on the thicker side 🙂

Let it cool for about 30 minutes- this will help it all set so that when you cut it, the potatoes layers won’t slide all over the place… to expedite this process (if you’re starting like I always seem to be), you can place it in the refrigerator (or even the freezer if really desperate)

Top with fresh rosemary, cut like a pie, and serve!

Enjoy!!