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Monday, December 20, 2010

Sweet Potato Gratins and Beet Gratins

I waxed euphoric over the individual potato gratins.  Please, allow me to add sweet potatoes and beets to that list.  This is a recipe that has so many possibilities.

Here's a link to the original post:  Individual Potato Gratins



Basically, you slice red potatoes VERY thinly and layer them in muffin tins with salt, pepper, garlic and a bit of finely grated cheese.  Then, you top them with a tablespoon of cream and bake them.  They're beyond wonderful.  We've now had them at least four times...  Connie asks for them and he's not a huge fan of potatoes. 

Once we tried the individual potato gratins, Connie and I brainstormed.  Basic ingredients, liquid, cheese, seasonings...  Two of our top choices were beets and sweet potatoes.  Now, the problem with both of them is that they aren't typically a size that can be easily mandolined and fit into a muffin tin.  So, when we tried these I had a choice between cutting rounds that would fit and wasting a good bit of potato or beet OR cutting pieces and filling the muffin tins.  My Scotch heritage won out.  Go figure.  They still tasted fantastic.  They just didn't stand beautifully on their own once they were taken out of the muffin tins. 

How did we make them?  In both cases, we used blue cheese with cream.  I added some chopped walnuts to the beet gratins:









My guess is these will be great with a lower calorie option like chicken stock or a mix of chicken stock and some white wine.  I'm also dreaming up different combinations.  Like greek lemon potatoes.  Or, mediterranean with some kalamata olives.  I just bought a new bag of red potatoes so a remix is on the menu!

12 comments:

Monet said...

We have a huge bag of potatoes in my pantry (my mom has a tendency to overbuy during the holidays) I'm eager to try a variety of this recipe. I love how you bake them in muffin tins. Inspired! Thanks for sharing, my friend.

Tasty Trix said...

I love this kind of thing. Maybe a little too much ... The muffin tins make it so nice and neat.

Kim - Liv Life said...

I really like this muffin tin method... have never thought of that before. Nicely done!

Kath said...

What a great idea! I'd love it with potatoes, sweet potatoes, or beets!

Liz That Skinny Chick Can Bake said...

Oooh, I'd love the beet version! Genius!!!

Jean said...

I love and kind of gratin and the muffin idea is awesome!

Green Girl @ A little bit of everything said...

a muffin gratin is a great idea
I'll definitely give it a try soon, thanks for sharing.
Hope you'll have a wonderful holiday season.

Lomo said...

These look and sound quite tasty Kate! I am still wanting to try the origianl ones and you throw a new combination out there! I will add these to the list.

Unknown said...

Doggonit, I just used up our potatoes last night and I want to try this SO bad. I don't even have beets I can use. I guess it's time to go shopping. Thanks for sharing.

Loren said...

The beet gratins look awesome. We both love beets and are always looking for new uses. This definitely fits the bill.
~Loren

Becky said...

Your gratins look wonderful, especially the sweet potato version.
It's a really good idea to bake them in the muffin tins for individual servings, especially if there are only few people eating them.

Happy New Year 2011.

Megan said...

Thanks for posting this - I'm getting beets in my CSA box and I can't stand them. However, nothing a little cream and cheese can't cure!