Spinach and Potato Gratin

Now after I posted my last entry I had very good intentions of posting lots more. Then my camera batteries (sniff) died. I was about to take a photo of something, something I can’t remember now. I was also going to photograph a dish I made called Buddha’s Delight, a “make your own take out” out of an old Cooking Light. It wasn’t happening. I was very sad.

But here we are! Today’s delectable dish is from another old Cooking Light. I tore this page out years ago and we’ve been making it, with some little modifications, ever since. It’s a gratin packed with potatoes, spinach, and ham. And cheese. So you can’t really go wrong.

The original recipe claims there’s eight servings, but I scoff at them. Eight servings for people with no appetite, maybe. I’ve gotten six out of it, and it’s great with a little salad. Maybe some crusty bread.

You’ll need:
2 tsp extra virgin olive oil
1/2 c shallots, diced, sliced, whatever. I’ve used onions, too, but cut them back to 1/3 c or so.
2 minced garlic cloves
1 c chopped ham. I’ve used deli on most occasions, or a ham steak. This time it’s leftover Christmas ham from the freezer. You’ll want between 4-5 ounces.
1 package frozen spinach, thawed and squeezed in some dishtowels to get the extra water out.
ground pepper
1/8 tsp nutmeg
1.5 c 1% milk (skim might be too thin for this)
1/3 c all-purpose flour
3 yukon gold potatoes, sliced really thin. I use a mandolin for this. Watch your fingers.
3 ounces grated cheese. Today I’m using reduced-fat cheddar.

First, get everything ready. Potatoes sliced, ham diced, spinach squeezed, veg sliced. In a small skillet over medium-high, add 2 t olive oil and shallot and garlic. Saute a couple minutes until softened. Turn heat off, add spinach, ham, pepper, nutmeg. Stir, stir.

Combine milk, flour, and more pepper with a whisk.

In an 8″ or so baking dish, layer half the potatoes. Add spinach mixture. Add rest of potatoes. Pour milk over. Cover with aluminum foil and pop into a 375 degree oven for 1 hour, 15 minutes. In meantime, grate your cheese. Remove foil, add cheese, bake another 15 minutes. Pop on broiler and broil a few minutes until cheese is browned. Delectable!

There was supposed to be all this salt in the dish, but I find that with the ham there’s generally enough. 1/6 of the gratin as made clocks in at just over 200 calories, so you have plenty of room for everything else!

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