Potato and Mushroom Gratin

My favorite past-time activity is to cuddle up with nice cookbook, with pictures of course. I was browsing my Nigella book and as result, Potato and Mushroom Gratin.

Potato and Mushroom Gratin

3 average-size baking potatoes (about 750 g), thinly sliced
350 ml milk
3 tablespoons white wine
salt and pepper to taste
2 tablespoons butter
2 teaspoons garlic oil
250 g chestnut mushrooms, finely sliced


1. Heat the oven to 220°C and butter a shallow baking dish or gratin.

2. Bring the sliced potatoes, milk, wine, salt, and pepper to boil in a saucepan, stirring occasionally, and leave it at a simmer while you get on with the mushrooms.

3. Melt the butter and garlic oil in a skillet over medium-high heat. Add the mushrooms and cook, stirring occasionally, until softened, about 3 minutes.

4. Pour the mushrooms and their garlicky, buttery juices into the pan of potatoes, stir to mix, and pour straight into the gratin dish. Bake for 45 minutes alongside the chicken or until piping hot and crisp on top.


My version: Opposite to Nigella's, I peeled my potatoes. Only time when I eat unpeeled potatoes is when they are cooked in campfire, fantastic outside snack. I had bottle of cider in my hands so I used cider instead of white wine, the one wine which I had, well, I drank it during cooking, so not that much left for "real cooking" :-).

Valuation: Great side for Mustard Pork Chops for instance.

Recipe adapted from: Nigella Express by Nigella Lawson

Mustard Pork Chops

I got Nigella Express from http://www.amazon.co.uk/ about month ago already but this is the first time when I actually cook something from it. I prefer to browse cookbooks as bedtime reading material and fantasize what all I could cook if I have time and supplies and.... well, you know, it's also known as pure laziness :-).

Mustard Pork Chops

2 pork chops, about 450 g
2 teaspoons garlic oil
125 ml apple cider
1 tablespoon grain mustard
75 ml double cream

1. Cut the fat or rind off the chops, and then bash them briefly but brutally with a rolling pin between 2 pieces of cling film/plastic wrap to make them thinner.

2. Heat the oil in a pan, and then cook the chops over a moderately-high heat for about 5 minutes a side. Remove them to a warmed plate.

3. Pour the cider into the pan, still over the heat, to deglaze the pan. Let it bubble away for a minute or so then add the mustard and stir in the cream.

4. Let the sauce continue cooking for a few minutes before pouring over each plated pork chop. If you're having gnocchi with, make sure you turn them in the pan to absorb any spare juices before adding them to your plates.


My version: I used Dijon mustard and meat hammer to hammer pork chops just because I have meat hammer and I am rather fond of my rolling pin:-). I also added ground pepper and salt to pork chops, my grandmother did it and my mother does, so it's hard to go without adding pepper and salt to pork, habits die hard :-) but I think it would have been lacked in taste without seasoning. I didn't have garlic oil, so I used regular oil but I chopped in half clove of garlic.

Valuation: definitively something which I'll cook again some time soon and it is super super easy and fast. Very tasty and great sauce to soak your bread in also :-). I served with vegetables and nice bunch of spring onion, love that one, if I could I'd probably put it into cake also :-).

Recipe adapted from: Nigella Express by Nigella Lawson