Halloumi potato gratin

A stunning festive side dish!

Potatoes are a must in any festive meal, and this is definitely my favourite way to have them! Everyone loves a good gratin so I have decided to bring mine to the next level by adding halloumi cheese in between the thinly sliced potato layers.

So what is potato gratin?

Also known as Dauphinoise it is a French classic in which you bake sliced potatoes in aromatic cream and top them with cheese. This makes them similar to scalloped potatoes although while those are made with a flour-butter-milk roux, the French version base is cream and cheese.

🌱Vegetarian

🍽️ 4 portions

Ingredients

• 1kg potato

• 160g halloumi cheese

• 300g heavy cream

• 2 tsp thyme

• 3 garlic cloves, peeled and sliced

• Optional: grated Parmesan to finish on top

Method

• Take your halloumi cheese and grate it into shreds with the coarse side of a grater into a bowl

• Take a pot and add the heavy cream, garlic cloves, thyme. Place at medium heat on the stove and cook for 5-10 minutes to infuse the cream. Once it boils remove from the heat. Add in your grated halloumi cheese.

• Peel the potatoes and with the help of a knife or mandolin cut into thin slices. Bring a pot of water to parboil and drop the potato slices in for 5 minutes. Drain and set aside.

• Start lining up your potato slices into a baking dish, in a round motion. Once you have completed a layer laddle some of your cream and halloumi mix. Continue layering the potatoes and the cream until you are done. Finish by grating over a generous portion of Parmesan cheese, this will create a nice crust once you bake it

• Bake in a pre-heated oven at 180C for 35 minutes or until the cheese becomes golden on top. Garnish with more thyme.

FAQS and Tips

• For extra flavour I recommend adding in 1 tbsp of miso paste into the heavy cream before boiling it.

• The best kind of potatoes to use are a starchy variety since you want them to become soft once you bake them. I recommend, King Edward, Russet or Maris Piper variety.