Name: Potato Gratin with Haricots Verts & Ham
Prep time: 30 min
Cook time: 60 min
Total time: 90 min
Ingredients: 3 cups 1% low-fat milk ((or whole milk)); 2 pounds small red potatoes, unpeeled, thinly sliced; 2 garlic cloves, peeled & thinly sliced; 2 bay leaves; 6 ounces haricots verts, trimmed ((or green beans, trimmed)); cooking spray ((for coating baking dish)); 5 ounces cooked ham, cut into thin julienne strips ((about 1 cup)); 4 ounces shredded Gruyère cheese ((about 1 cup)); 1/2 teaspoon salt; 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper; 1/8 teaspoon ground nutmeg

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Having the gang over for dinner? Here’s the perfect dish to go along side of your favorite roast or grilled meats. It’s actually hearty enough to be served by itself. Really. This Potato Gratin with Haricots Verts & Ham has it all.

The finished dish is rich and flavorful without adding a pat of butter or a splash of heavy cream. The potatoes actually taste creamy after simmering in low-fat milk then baking in the oven covered with a light layer of nutty gruyere.

The original recipe for this potato gratin comes from an old issue of Cooking Light magazine. Those guys have always been the geniuses when it comes to lightening up the traditional comforting dishes. Of course, I tweaked it here and there …it just seemed to need a bit more beans and ham. So glad I did.

What you’ll need to get started…

Milk – Low-fat milk is indicated in the recipe but whole milk would also work well.
Small red-skinned potatoes – Unpeeled & cut into thin slices. Small red-skinned potatoes are thin-skinned, waxy potatoes that hold their shape well during cooking, making them perfect for this dish. Try to choose very small potatoes that are uniform in size.
Fresh garlic cloves – Peeled & very thinly sliced.
Bay leaves – Bay leaf adds a subtle, herbal, and slightly floral flavor, with notes of thyme and oregano. Remove & discard before assembling dish.
Haricots verts – Regular fresh green beans can be used as a substitute for the french beans.
Cooking spray – Used to coat the baking dish. You could also brush on some butter or oil as an alternative.
Cooked ham – Cut into thin julienne strips. I have great success using a lower-sodium unprocessed ½-inch-thick ham steak for this recipe.
Gruyère cheese – Freshly grated. Gruyère has a strong complex flavor profile, with notes of nuts, fruit, and a hint of earthiness. The firm, dense texture lends well to grating and melting.
Salt – Finely ground table salt is fine.
Freshly ground black pepper
Ground nutmeg – Ground nutmeg has a warm, woody, and slightly sweet flavor with a hint of clove. It’s often described as aromatic and can add depth to dishes and baked goods. It’s very subtle in this dish.

Haricots Verts vs Green Beans…

Just in case you’re wondering what those haricots verts are all about …they’re basically the french version of our green beans. They tend to be longer and very slender in comparison. They also are more tender with an increased robust flavor.

You can use either one here. Keep in mind, though, that the regular green beans will need a few extra minutes of blanching before adding them to the final dish.

Creamy potatoes without butter or heavy cream…

You’re most likely wondering how this is possible. No butter? No heavy cream? It’s true.

You’ll be simmering the sliced potatoes in a bath of low-fat milk that is flavored with some sliced garlic and a few bay leaves. The key to your success is to have thin slices of potato that are uniform in size. Unless you are a trained chef, those perfect slices are very difficult to achieve using just a knife.

I always use my mandoline slicer for this task. Please be careful …that blade is super sharp. To protect myself, I now use these awesome cut-resistant gloves each and every time.

Preheat oven to 400°F.

Combine the milk, sliced potatoes, sliced garlic & bay leaves in a large saucepan over medium heat.
Bring to a boil, stirring constantly.
Reduce heat & simmer for 10 minutes, stirring frequently.
Remove the pan from heat and let stand 10 minutes.
Carefully drain the potatoes in a colander that’s placed over a heatproof bowl.
You’ll need to reserve one cup of the milk mixture.
If necessary, add additional milk to the mixture so that you have a full cup.
Discard the bay leaves.

Proceed with caution…

When the sliced potatoes are finished simmering in the milk mixture, they will be very tender.
They can easily break apart so it’s a good idea to set the most intact slices aside to use on the top layer.
Be sure to place your colander over a large heatproof bowl to catch the drippings as you drain them.
You’ll need some of that cooked milk mixture to add to your baking dish later.

Cook the haricots verts in boiling water for 2 minutes or until crisp-tender.
If using regular green beans, cook for 4 minutes until crisp-tender.
Rinse in cold water & drain.

A note on those beans…

Whether you are using haricots verts or regular old green beans, they need to be partially cooked before adding them to your potato gratin.
Since the green beans tend to be thicker, they require an extra few minutes of blanching.

Layer it up…

This potato gratin basically consists of two layers of potatoes with all of the beans and ham sandwiched between.
Some of the cheese is added with them with the rest sprinkled over the top layer.

Arrange half of the potatoes in the bottom of a 13 x 9-inch baking dish coated with cooking spray.
Arrange the haricots verts and ham evenly over the potatoes.
Sprinkle with half of the cheese, salt & pepper.
Arrange the remaining potatoes evenly over the top.
Sprinkle with the remaining cheese, salt & pepper.

Almost there…

Stir the ground nutmeg into the reserved milk mixture.
Pour the milk mixture over the top layer.

Cover with foil.
Cut three 1-inch slits in foil.
Bake, covered, at 400°F for 20 minutes.
Uncover and bake an additional 20 minutes or until cheese begins to brown.
Let stand 10 minutes before serving.

You now have Potato Gratin With Haricots Verts & Ham…

Let this beauty stand for about ten minutes before digging in. You won’t believe how rich and creamy it tastes …all without the addition of butter or cream.

Pretty amazing. Another bonus …this is naturally gluten-free.