Tomato Au Gratin (Potato Bake)

Was lusting for some French Italian fusion and had a pile of potatoes lying around, so invented a quick recipe.

Sloppy plating effort, but yum!

Came out pretty well, this works beautifully as a side dish with some lamb or other meat and taste’s best after allowing it to cool down a bit and have the flavours blend and mellow a little. No little packets of powder required for this one, but you could mix in some mushroom soup powder with the cream for some extra punch!

Ingredients
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12 Medium Potatoes
2 Medium Onions
1 Can Tomato (400g drained)
1 Tub of Ricotta Cheese
400g soft Mozzarella Cheese
400g Mature Cheddar Cheese, grated
500ml Fresh Cream
Handful of fresh sweet basil
2 Cloves garlic
Olive oil
Salt and Pepper
Origanum

2 cups cornflakes -> optional

Getting ingredients together

Instructions
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I use a flat bottom potjie (cast iron pot/dutch oven) to cook this with the lid on, but you could also use a fireproof dish covered with some foil.

Slice the onions into fine slices.

Slice the potatoes into max 5mm slices.

Chop the basil leaves and garlic, combine with a few tablespoons of olive oil
with some salt and a teaspoon of origanum, bash a little (use a mortar and pestle if you have one).

Drain the juice from the tomatoes and mix in with the basil and garlic mix.

Layer potatoes with the onions and tomatoes (break the tomatoes a little),
adding cheese (alternating between mozzarella and Ricotta) between your layers.
Do 3 layers or so leaving enough potato to cover the top, finish by placing the grated Cheddar on top.

Add salt and pepper between layers to taste.

Pour the 500ml Cream into your container.

Bake in preheated oven at 180 deg C for 90-110 minutes until potatoes are soft and cooked through,
test by passing a baking needle or thin knife through to the bottom, there should be little to no resistance.

Optional
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Crush 2 cups of Korn Flakes and mix in with half a cup of olive oil,
spread on the surface of the dish during the last 20 minutes of baking and leave uncovered.

Ready!

That’s it enjoy!