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Potato, leek and silverbeet gratin

A sumptuous recipe for potato, leek and silverbeet gratin.

By Emma Knowles & Lisa Featherby
  • 25 mins preparation
  • 1 hr 15 mins cooking
  • Serves 8
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Potato, leek and silverbeet gratin
It's common to see a gratin served as an accompaniment to a meat or poultry dish, but with a crisp green salad and plenty of crusty bread, this is really a meal in itself. You can cook it in advance if you like, then add the breadcrumb topping and warm it through just before serving.

Ingredients

  • 1 bunch silverbeet (about 850gm), trimmed, half the stalks reserved
  • 50 ml olive oil
  • 80 gm butter, coarsely chopped
  • 1 leek, thinly sliced
  • 3 garlic cloves, finely chopped
  • 2 kg waxy potatoes, such as kipflers
  • 800 ml pouring cream
  • 80 gm coarse fresh breadcrumbs
  • 3 tsp thyme
  • Finely grated rind of 1 lemon
  • To serve: crisp green salad and crusty bread

Method

Main
  • 1
    Preheat oven to 180C. Coarsely chop silverbeet leaves and thinly slice the reserved stalks, and set aside separately.
  • 2
    Heat oil and 20gm butter in a large saucepan over medium-high heat until foaming, add leek, silverbeet stalks and two-thirds of the garlic and stir occasionally until tender (3-4 minutes). Add silverbeet leaves, stir occasionally until tender and wilted (2-3 minutes), season to taste, then transfer to a colander to drain excess liquid.
  • 3
    Meanwhile, thinly slice potato on a mandolin, combine in a bowl with cream to prevent discolouring, season to taste and set aside.
  • 4
    Spread silverbeet mixture in the base of a buttered 2-litre baking dish, then arrange potato in overlapping layers on top, seasoning well as you go. Pour over enough cream to just cover, dot with 20gm butter, place on a baking tray and bake until bubbling and golden around the edges (45-50 minutes).
  • 5
    Meanwhile, melt remaining butter, combine in a bowl with breadcrumbs, thyme and rind, season to taste. Scatter over gratin, bake until crumbs are golden and potato is tender when pierced with a skewer (8-10 minutes). Serve hot with a crisp green salad and crusty bread.

Notes

Drink Suggestion: White Bordeaux (semillon sauvignon blend). Drink suggestion by Max Allen