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CPA: Certified Pastry Aficionado

Parmesan & Thyme Potatoes Au Gratin

Fall Flavors· sides
May 8, 2017

Jump to Recipe Print Recipe

Parmesan & Thyme Potatoes Au Gratin – Thinly sliced russet potatoes layered in a casserole dish with heavy cream, Parmesan cheese, and fresh thyme. This dish is so simple to make but is super impressive for any occasion!

Casserole dish of Parmesan & Thyme Potatoes Au GratinThis week I spent some time at the Everything Food Conference in Salt Lake City. Did you see me document the whole thing on Instagram stories? I am starting to love that feature because I can share so much more of my life outside of these regular posts. I’m trying harder to do it more regularly so check it out, if you haven’t yet!

Anywho, at the conference, I got to meet with tons of other food bloggers and influencers and brands to talk about…FOOOOOOD! It’s only my favorite subject in the whole world. Shocking.

But aside from networking, I also learned an insane amount of information. Just when I thought I knew so much about the blogging basics, the speakers at this conference blew. my. mind.

One thing I learned in the sessions was to understand my mission; my why. Why do I do this blog? What do I want to provide each one of you guys? I started this blog because I loved talking about food, trying new recipes, and then sharing them with you guys.

But along the way, I’ve learned that I continue to do this blog to inspire you to try new things and challenge yourself and have the confidence to step outside of your comfort zone. This blog has quickly shifted from something I did for myself to something that I do for you guys.

So, if there is anything that you want me to add to the blog or recipe that you just NEED me to make, let me know! This is all for you, after all. Thank you for inspiring me everyday and making this blog so successful!!!

Alrighty, now on to the recipe for today: Parmesan & Thyme Potatoes Au Gratin!!

Scooping out Parmesan & Thyme Potatoes Au Gratin Closeup of Parmesan & Thyme Potatoes Au Gratin Parmesan & Thyme Potatoes Au Gratin with half scooped out

Okay guys…now it’s time for some honesty. How many of you have only made au gratin/scalloped potatoes from a packet? It’s okay…this is a safe space.

Now, I will be honest with you, too…for the longest time, the only au gratin potatoes that I knew were the ones from a packet that my dad would make. Gasp! But he wasn’t into cooking unless it was meat so that’s just what we did to keep things simple.

As I got older and learned how to make things from scratch (thanks, Food Network!!), I finally knew how to make these yummy potatoes using FRESH potatoes. And the craziest thing about the process is that it takes almost no time at all. I swear!

So step one is to slice the potatoes. I have always used a mandoline slicer to get perfectly even slices because I just can’t get them thin enough with a knife. I love this slicer because it is super easy to use AND clean. Check and check.

Slicing potatoes with a mandolin slicer

After you slice the potatoes, you literally just warm the cream, add the potatoes, and then bake. THAT’S IT! Isn’t it just insanity that you can do so little so get the most incredible, impressive dish?? There is absolutely no reason why you should be making these from a packet anymore. Nope, no excuses!

Let’s talk about the ingredients in these parmesan & thyme potatoes au gratin. There are your basic food groups: carbs, cheese, and cream. I could really stop here but there’s more.

In addition to the trifecta of mouth-watering ingredients in these potatoes, there is one last game-changing ingredient that I can’t ignore: fresh thyme. Thyme adds such subtle, yet powerful flavor to poultry and creamy dishes. But we don’t want it to overpower the dish so we simple boil the twigs of thyme in the cream to infuse it and then remove them before adding in the potatoes.

I personally love to make this for date nights at home so I will cut the recipe in half so we aren’t eating left overs for too long after. But you can easily serve it for Mother’s Day, Thanksgiving, Christmas, Easter, you name it!

Mixing the potato slices with the dry ingredients Sprinkling cheese on the potato slices in a casserole dish Parmesan & Thyme Potatoes Au Gratin before cooking

I gave you some great tips above, but here are a couple more to help you get this recipe right the first time:

  1. When using a mandoline slicer, be EXTREMELY careful! You want to use the provided holder for the potato so you don’t allow your fingers to get close to the blades. If your mandoline doesn’t have that holder, please, please use knife gloves.
  2. My potatoes were super “juicy” on the inside (is juicy the right word? Moist? Watery? You get the idea) so I gave them a pat down before I added them to the cream. Otherwise, the potatoes will be too runny and won’t crisp up. I didn’t have to do this every time but if you ever get juicy potatoes, keep this tip in mind.
  3. Make sure you are using grated Parmesan, not shredded. Shredded Parmesan is super dry and won’t melt together like grated Parmesan does. Therefore, you will get a whole bunch of crispy brown flakes of Parmesan on top of the potatoes that doesn’t look super pretty. But if presentation isn’t important to you, then don’t worry about it!

And that’s all there is to it! See, aren’t these the simplest potatoes ever?! Let me know how you like them!

Parmesan & Thyme Potatoes Au Gratinafter cooking

Here are all the kitchen tools and serveware that I used in today’s recipe. For each item sold below, I make a small commission. I only recommend items that I own and love so you can trust that each recommendation is tried and true. Thank you for supporting CPA!

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Print Recipe

Creamy Parmesan & Thyme Potatoes Au Gratin

Thinly sliced russet potatoes layered in a casserole dish with heavy cream, Parmesan cheese, and fresh thyme. This dish is so simple to make but is super impressive for any occasion!
Prep Time10 minutes mins
Cook Time40 minutes mins
Total Time1 hour hr
Servings: 4 servings

Ingredients

  • 1 1/2 pounds russet potatoes peeled and sliced into 1/8 inch slices
  • 1 cup heavy cream
  • 2 bay leaves
  • 5 sprigs fresh thyme
  • 1 clove garlic minced
  • 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
  • 1/3 cup Parmesan cheese grated
  • salt and pepper to taste

Instructions

  • Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Add heavy cream, bay leaves, 2 springs of thyme, garlic, nutmeg, and some salt and pepper to a large sauce pan. Heat over medium heat until it begins to boil. Remove bay leaves and thyme twigs.
  • Add sliced potatoes to heated cream. Gently toss together. Sprinkle Parmesan cheese over potatoes, along with more salt and pepper, and toss again to combine.
  • Grease a medium casserole dish or square baking pan. Place potato mixture evenly into greased dish. Sprinkle with more Parmesan cheese and thyme leaves from 3 remaining twigs. Cover dish with aluminum foil with a corner pulled back to vent the steam.
  • Bake for 30 minutes in a preheated oven. Remove foil and bake until top begins to get super crispy and brown, about 10 more minutes.
  • Remove from oven and let it sit until the bubbling subsides, about 10 minutes. Serve warm.

Notes

Recipe adapted from Tyler Florence

Pin for later:

Parmesan & Thyme Potatoes Au Gratin photo collage

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25 Comments

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Comments

  1. Vicki says

    July 15, 2019 at 12:37 pm

    Yay! I grew up eating these potatoes, only with thinly sliced onions added to the layers, and I’ve been searching for the recipe. I’m going to make them for a potluck this weekend. Thanks!

    Reply
    • Sharon says

      July 23, 2019 at 6:15 am

      Yay! Let me know how they turn out!

      Reply
  2. Kimberly @ Berly's Kitchen says

    May 10, 2017 at 9:21 pm

    That’s awesome that you were able to attend the conference. Hopefully, we’ll make it some year. 🙂 In the meantime, these potatoes look so good. Cheesy, creamy potatoes are the way to go.

    Reply
  3. Melissa @ Insider The Kitchen says

    May 9, 2017 at 1:04 pm

    5 stars, a new favorite potato recipe! Easy to make, guests raved & everyone had
    seconds!

    Reply
    • Sharon says

      May 9, 2017 at 4:01 pm

      So glad you loved it!

      Reply
  4. Kate says

    May 8, 2017 at 10:53 pm

    This looks like a perfect comfort food! Such delicious flavors going on here.

    Reply
    • Sharon says

      May 9, 2017 at 6:01 am

      Yess! I am all about the comfort food!

      Reply
  5. Jamie @ The Skinny Soul says

    May 8, 2017 at 8:40 pm

    This looks so completely delicious–my mouth is watering from looking at the pictures!! Love that you’re using fresh herbs in this 🙂

    Reply
    • Sharon says

      May 9, 2017 at 6:02 am

      Thanks so much! Yes, I love using fresh herbs, especially thyme. I can keep it in my fridges for a long time before it starts to get old. Love it!

      Reply
  6. Francesca says

    May 8, 2017 at 7:40 pm

    Potatoes au gratin is one of my all time favourites!! These look amazing!

    Reply
    • Sharon says

      May 9, 2017 at 6:04 am

      Mine too! Thanks so much!

      Reply
  7. Dominique says

    May 8, 2017 at 7:27 pm

    That dish looks delicious and I really like the look of that potato slicer – so handy!

    Reply
  8. Sue Tanya Mchorgh says

    May 8, 2017 at 7:19 pm

    Yummy! Thanks for sharing this recipe

    Reply
    • Sharon says

      May 9, 2017 at 6:08 am

      You’re welcome!

      Reply
  9. Cat says

    May 8, 2017 at 6:26 pm

    My mouth is watering looking at this–mmm yum! I cannot wait to try this potato au gratin recipe!

    Reply
    • Sharon says

      May 9, 2017 at 6:08 am

      Thank you!

      Reply
  10. candy says

    May 8, 2017 at 1:45 pm

    Au-gratin potato goes with anything in my book. Love using different herbs to change up the flavor.

    Reply
    • Sharon says

      May 9, 2017 at 6:09 am

      So true! Thanks for stopping by!

      Reply
  11. Jolina says

    May 8, 2017 at 1:41 pm

    I would have loved to be in that conference. That’s a great insight that I would think about all day today (ok, all week!). So these incredible potatoes…we’ve never actually made them at home. I guess you could say we were in a mashed potato rut lol. But with parmesan and heavy cream?? Count me in!

    Reply
    • Sharon says

      May 9, 2017 at 6:10 am

      It was so great! I didn’t know what to expect since it was my first conference, but it was so worth it. Definitely going next year! I hope these potatoes help you get out of that rut!

      Reply
  12. Jen says

    May 8, 2017 at 1:31 pm

    Wow, these look amazing and your steps were super easy to follow! Can’t wait to try this!

    Reply
  13. Quinn Caudill says

    May 8, 2017 at 12:53 pm

    I so wanted to goto the Everything Food Conference. Maybe next year! I love this recipe and thanks for sharing your thoughts.

    Reply
    • Sharon says

      May 9, 2017 at 6:11 am

      It was amazing. Hope to see you there next year!

      Reply
  14. Krysten says

    May 8, 2017 at 11:27 am

    Mmm yes please, my mom would LOVE these!

    Reply
    • Sharon says

      May 9, 2017 at 6:11 am

      Woohoo! It’s the perfect way to get out of your typical potato routine

      Reply

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Hi, my name is Sharon. I’m an accountant by day, risk-taking baker and food enthusiast by night. Come join me as I share my favorite recipes and test out new ones along the way!

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