Potatoes Dauphinoise with Garlic and Herb Infused Cream

Ingredients

• 2 cups heavy cream
• 7 medium waxy potatoes, such as Yukon Gold, peeled (7 to 8)
• 2 garlic cloves, smashed
• 1 sprig rosemary
• 1 sprig thyme, plus a few leaves for the top
• 1 sprig sage, optional
• 3 black peppercorns, optional
• 3 tbsp butter, divided (some for the cream, some for the dish, some to dot on top)
• salt, a generous amount, and pepper

Instructions

1. 1

   Put the smashed garlic, rosemary, thyme, and sage and peppercorns if using in a saucepan. Pour in the cream and bring it just to a boil.

2. 2

   Take it off the heat, add a knob of butter and a generous amount of salt, and let it infuse for 20 to 30 minutes. The cream needs to be well salted to season all the potatoes.

   25 min
3. 3

   Strain the cream and discard the garlic and herbs.

4. 4

   Heat the oven to 350°F.

5. 5

   Slice the peeled potatoes very thin on a mandoline, about 1/16 inch. Toss the slices in the infused cream so they're coated.

6. 6

   Butter the inside of the baking dish. Stand the potato slices upright in tight, overlapping rows until the dish is full.

7. 7

   Pour the rest of the cream over the top, then dot with butter and scatter with thyme leaves.

8. 8

   Bake for 1 hour. Then raise the heat to 380°F and bake 10 to 15 minutes more, until golden and bubbly with crisp edges.

   1 hr 15 min
9. 9

   Let it rest 10 to 15 minutes before serving so the potatoes soak up the remaining cream and aren't scorching hot.

   15 min