Roasted Garlic And Herb Potato Gratin - cooking recipe

Ingredients

2 heads garlic, cloves pulled apart, but not peeled
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 1/2 cups creme fraiche (substitute sour cream)
1 cup heavy cream
1/2 cup milk
1 teaspoon salt
3/4 teaspoon dried rosemary
3/4 teaspoon dried sage
3/4 teaspoon thyme
1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
10 ounces grated young gouda cheese
2 tablespoons butter, softened
2 lbs baking potatoes, peeled and cut crosswise into 1/4 inch slices

Preparation

Preheat the oven to 375*F. Place the garlic cloves in a small, ovenproof pan and drizzle them with the olive oil. Roast the garlic in the preheated oven, stirring occasionally, for 35 to 45 minutes, until it is tender. Allow the garlic to cool for 10 minutes and then squeeze out the roasted garlic into a clean, medium-sized bowl.
Mash the garlic with a fork until it's a smooth paste. Stir the creme fraiche, heavy cream, milk, salt, rosemary, sage, thyme, and ground black pepper until the mixture is smooth. Stir the grated Gouda cheese into the herbed cream mixture.
Lower the oven heat to 350\u00b0F Butter a large baking dish and spread 2/3 cup of the herbed cream into the bottom of the dish. Layer half of the potatoes into the dish, and spread half of the remaining herbed cream onto the potatoes, and repeat the same process one more time. Press down on the top layer of potatoes, cover the pan with foil or a lid, and bake the gratin for 90 minutes. Allow it to cool for 15 minutes before serving.
My Notes: This recipe calls for young Gouda cheese. Young Gouda can be easily identified by looking for a red or yellow wax wrapping. Aged Gouda, slighter bitter and stronger tasting, comes wrapped in black wax.