Creamy Bacon Potato Bake (Print Version)
# Ingredients:
→ Base Ingredients
01 -
Salt and cracked pepper, to taste
02 -
8 oz cheese (try sharp cheddar and Gruyere together)
03 -
12 oz bacon, cooked up and crumbled
04 -
2 medium onions, sliced up thin
05 -
3 lbs potatoes, sliced as thin as you can (Yukon Gold or russet work best)
→ For the Cream Sauce
06 -
3 cups whole milk
07 -
4 tbsp all-purpose flour
08 -
4 tbsp unsalted butter
09 -
2 tbsp good olive oil
# Instructions:
01 -
Take the dish out of the oven and let it chill for about 10 minutes. That way, everything sets up a bit and will be way easier to scoop out. Enjoy it while it’s still nice and warm.
02 -
Pop the foil off and let your dish go back in for half an hour more, until the surface is sizzling, golden, and the potatoes are fork-tender.
03 -
Loosely cover your pan with foil and bake for a full hour. Give it plenty of time to soften up.
04 -
First, layer half the sliced potatoes at the bottom of your pan. Scatter on half your onions, followed by a layer of bacon bits and some cheese. Spoon on part of the creamy sauce. Do this again with what’s left and shower the last of the cheese across the top.
05 -
Melt your butter in a saucepan over medium heat. Sprinkle in the flour and whisk for a couple of minutes so it isn't raw. Pour the milk in slowly as you stir. Let it gently boil till it's a bit thick. Add salt and pepper once it's ready.
06 -
Fry up your bacon till super crispy, either on the stove or toss it on a baking sheet at 400°F for 15–20 minutes. Once it’s cooled down a little, crumble it into small bits.
07 -
Warm up olive oil in your skillet on medium. Toss in the onion slices with a bit of salt and pepper. Stir every so often and caramelize for about 20 minutes till they turn dark and sweet. Set these aside.
08 -
Heat up your oven to 350°F first. Smear some butter in your 9x13 pan so nothing sticks. If you’ve got a mandoline for slicing potatoes thin and even, now’s the perfect time to use it.
# Notes:
01 -
A mandoline makes potato slices the same thickness, so everything cooks up evenly.
02 -
Need to feed a crowd? Just double everything and you'll be set for parties or big dinners.
03 -
Mix up the cheeses if you'd like. Gouda, Monterey Jack, or fontina all taste great with cheddar and Gruyere.
04 -
Toss leftovers in the fridge and eat within three days. They heat up great.