...In Him...: Recipes-Scalloped Potatoes

So many recipes catch my attention on Pinterest it is ridiculous. I had recently come across a recipe for Potatoes au Gratin that looked really good and decided to try it. Unfortunately, I forgot to repin it.

Bummer.

My husband found another recipe from southern.food.com for scalloped potatoes. I modified it a little by using whole wheat flour and 2% dairy products so as to not ruin our diet too much.

The recipe is super simple and I'll post the recipe and steps for you below. I recommend you read through the whole post before attempting to make this so you'll be familiar with some of the issues I ran into.

Scalloped Potatoes
6-8 medium or large red potatoes (peeled and thinly sliced)
3 tablespoons whole wheat flour
3 tablespoons Smart Balance 50/50 butter blend
1-1/2 cups 2% milk
1 teaspoon salt
1 dash Cayenne pepper
1 cup 2% shredded sharp cheddar cheese
1/2 cup reduced fat Parmesan cheese, to sprinkle on top
1/4 cup Italian Breadcrumbs

First things first, preheat your oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. I used a glass 9x11 inch baking dish for this recipe but two 8x8's will work also. Spray the baking dish of your choice with cooking spray and set aside. It's now time to peel potatoes.

Once your potatoes are peeled, slice them into 1/8 inch slices. I put my potatoes in a bowl once they were sliced so I could rinse them. Once the potatoes are sliced and rinsed, set them aside so you can make your cheese sauce.

Before I began to make the cheese sauce it was helpful to get all of my ingredients measured out and ready, especially because butter and flour can burn quickly and easily. (Also the reason why I have no photos of this step.)

In a saucepan, add the butter and allow to melt. Once the butter is melted, add flour and salt and whisk together until blended. Add the milk and bring to a light boil, whisking occasionally, until the cream sauce is smooth. Next add the sharp cheddar only, stirring until melted.

Had I known what I am about to tell you beforehand, I would have done this and had photos to demonstrate, but unfortunately I did not. My potatoes were not salted enough when this recipe was done. The problem I believe was that I did not layer my potatoes. My suggestion? Layer a row of potatoes in the bottom of your casserole dish, sprinkle a little bit of salt, and spoon some cheese sauce over the potatoes. Continue this pattern, being sure to not stack potatoes directly on top of the previous row, until you've run out of cheese sauce.

Now that you're at the top layer, sprinkle the Parmesan cheese, breadcrumbs and Paprika over the potatoes. Place the uncovered dish in the oven for 1 hour or until the potatoes are tender when poked with a fork.