Scalloped Potatoes

Taking you back for another childhood recipe!!  I just love this one... and really, what's not to love?  Thinly sliced potato, baked in a creamy sauce, topped with cheese.  My mom always called this Scalloped Potatoes, which is how I think of this cheesy dish.  Others may want to call this Au Gratin Potatoes.

Call this what you will, it's just plain comforting goodness. :)

I could eat this right out of the casserole dish.  Yup, not kidding.

Scalloped Potatoes
Recipe from my mom


5 russet potatoes
1/4 cup butter
1/4 cup onion, chopped
1/4 cup flour
2 1/2 cups milk
1 1/4 cups shredded cheddar, divided

1.  Preheat oven to 350.  Melt butter medium-sized pot over medium-high heat.  Add the onions and saute for a few minutes, until softened. Whisk in the flour and let that cook for a few minutes.

I store extra chopped onion in little containers to save time.

2.  Whisk in the milk and let that slowly heat and thicken (yup, you're making a bechamel sauce).  Season with salt and pepper to taste.  Once thickened, remove sauce from heat and stir in the cheese.

3.  As the sauce thickens, thinly slice the potatoes.  If you're feeling particularly domestic, feel free to do this by hand, it doesn't really take that long actually .  If you're in a hurry though, I strongly recommend doing this in the food processor.  Layer half the sliced potatoes in the bottom of a greased 2-quart casserole dish.

THIN (well, thanks to my food processor)

4.  Pour half the sauce over the potatoes.  Repeat layers.*  Bake, COVERED, at 350 for 45 minutes, stirring once.  Remove cover, sprinkle with remaining cheese and bake an additional 30 minutes.

*If you were making this ahead of time you can at this point cool, cover, and freeze the dish to bake later on.  Since there are only not-quite-4 in my family, I split this in half as I made it and baked one right away, putting the other away in the freezer for another time.  I will thaw before baking and then follow the normal baking instructions.