Cheesy Potatoes Gratin With Pesto And Peas Recipe [Sip Bite Go]
Scalloped potatoes gratin with pesto? Yes, please! If you love cheesy potatoes and milk-based, flavorful white sauces, you’ll be so pleased with this super easy potatoes gratin with pesto and peas and caramelized onions. It’s packed with flavor in each bite from the savory, cheesy center to the bubbling crunchy top. It requires a little prep but is an easy make-ahead potato side dish. Bake time is one hour. Leftovers are phenomenal. All this is making me hungry - let’s get to making this potato gratin with store-bought pesto.
Caramelize onions first. Add diced onions, olive oil, and salt to a small pan on medium heat on the stove. Stir onions regularly for 5-10 minutes until they are caramelized and turn golden brown. If they begin to burn, add a little drizzle of olive oil. If they are burning really badly the heat is probably too high. Turn down the heat to medium-low to fix this and add 1 tbsp of water to lift the burnt onions from the pan. Then add a drizzle of olive oil and keep stirring until caramelized.
Whisk together the milk, flour, and pesto, and set aside. Grease the bottom of a cast iron skillet or a baking dish with butter or cooking spray. Choose a vessel that will hold all the potatoes because they don’t cook down very much.
Add half of the potatoes to the baking dish. Then half of the filling ingredients: caramelized onions, cheddar, and mozzarella cheese, and peas. Add the rest of the sliced potatoes so they are about level with the top of the dish.
Pour the milk mixture over the potatoes until the liquid is about level with the potatoes. Add the rest of the filling/topping.
Bake potatoes gratin at 400 degrees for one hour, until the cheese is bubbling and brown. Let cool and set for 15-30 minutes before serving.
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Notes
Use a mandolin to thinly and uniformly slice the potatoes. I used the first 1-2 settings. The potatoes cook faster if you thinly slice them, and uniform slices means uniform, even cooking.
It’s easy to substitute the frozen peas in this potatoes gratin recipe for other frozen veggies like diced carrots or corn. Shoot for something that’s similar in size.
Don’t care for pesto sauce? Try a little garlic Alfredo sauce instead.
Cheeses can be switched out too-- other options I enjoy are fontina and gruyere.
This dish is easy to reheat. Just stick it in the oven at 400 degrees for around thirty minutes, until warmed through.