Jerry's Thoughts, Musings, and Rants!

Jamie Oliver's Roasted Cauliflower With Cumin, Coriander and Almonds

When most people think of ways to cook cauliflower they will come up with either boiling or gratinating - I'm sure this is the same for you. It may seem strange, but cauliflower is absolutely fantastic when lightly roasted, especially with herbs, spices, cheeses or breadcrumbs. It develops a really incredible flavour that is impressive. Here's a recipe by Jamie Oliver that is Indian-ish in style.

It isn't authentic 'indian style' cauliflower but it was heading enough in the correct direction that we decided to give it a try when we were last making Indian food. It is easy to prepare, involving very little in the way of prep, and as Oliver states, the flavour is incredible.

Jamie Oliver's Roasted Cauliflower With Cumin, Coriander and Almonds

1 head of cauliflower, outer green leaves removed, broken into florets
sea salt
olive oil
a knob of butter (we interpret a 'knob' to be about a tablespoon)
2 teaspoons cumin seeds
2 teaspoons coriander seeds
1-2 dried red chillies
a handful of blanched almonds, smashed
zest and juice of 1 lemon

Preheat your oven to 200°C/400°F/gas 6.

Blanch the cauliflower in salted boiling water for a couple of minutes then drain in a colander, allowing it to steam dry (you don't want any water left in your cauliflower or it won't roast properly).

Toss cauliflower in a good glug of olive oil and the butter.

In a pestle and mortar (we used a coffee grinder that I only use for spices) , bash your spices and chillies with a pinch of salt, then mix them with the almonds and put in a hot, dry oven-proof pan to slowly toast them.

After a couple of minutes, add the cauliflower.

When the cauliflower gets a nice bit of colour on it, add the lemon zest and juice and mix around well.

Fry for about a minute longer then pop the pan into the preheated oven for about 15 minutes to crisp up.

Grilled Carrots with Thyme and Onions

I don't know where I first found this recipe but it is probably one I have done on the grill more than any other. It is easy - a real no fuss production that results in a great addition to a meal. I've made this with carrot slices, baby carrots, julienned carrots, and so on - it is forgiving and flexible - my kind of recipe!

Grilled Carrots with Thyme and Onions

1 lb peeled carrots, sliced
1/2 cup chopped onion
4 tsp butter
2 tsp fresh thyme leaves
freshly ground pepper

Divide carrots between two pieces of foil large enough to fold into packets. Sprinkle evenly with onion, butter and thyme; season with salt and pepper to taste. Loosely wrap foil over vegetables, sealing tightly. Place on grill over medium-high heat; cook, turning once, for 20 to 25 minutes or until tender-crisp (note: smaller pieces of carrot will require less grilling time). Makes 4 servings.

Jamie Oliver's Grilled Monkfish with Olive Sauce and Lemon Mashed Potatoes

Monkfish is a lovely meaty fish to cook. However, it does contain a lot of milky juices. This can sometimes be a pain because they tend to come out during cooking, so instead of roasting, grilling or frying, you end up almost boiling the fish in its own juices. So what I tend to do to stop this is season the fish with salt about an hour before cooking - just be careful not to overdo it with the salt. This draws out any excess moisture – then I just pat it dry and get cooking. If you want to grill your monkfish, ask your fishmonger to butterfly the fillets for you.

Grilled Monkfish with Olive Sauce and Lemon Mashed Potatoes

sea salt
zest of 2 lemons, plus a little juice
a sprig of fresh rosemary, leaves picked
4 x 200g/7oz monkfish fillets
olive oil
2 bunches of rocket, washed and drained

for the black olive sauce:
2 large handfuls of good black olives, stoned and very roughly chopped
½ a fresh red chilli, deseeded and finely chopped
a small handful of fresh herbs (basil, marjoram and parsley), finely chopped
1 celery heart, yellow leaves chopped
1 clove of garlic, peeled and finely chopped
juice of 1 lemon
freshly ground black pepper
a couple of glugs of extra virgin olive oil
balsamic vinegar

for the lemon mash:
1kg/2lb 3oz floury potatoes
sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
extra virgin olive oil
milk
juice of 1 lemon

In a pestle and mortar or Flavour Shaker, smash up 2 tablespoons of salt with the lemon zest and rosemary and rub this all over the fish fillets. Put the fillets in a dish in the fridge and let them sit there for an hour.

Now make your black olive sauce by mixing all the ingredients except the vinegar together. You want the sauce to have the consistency of a coarse salsa. Then carefully balance the flavours with the vinegar to taste.

If you’re roasting your monkfish, preheat your oven to 220°C/425°F/gas 7 just before the fish comes out of the fridge. Pat the fish dry with some kitchen paper and then pat it with a little olive oil.

Peel and halve your potatoes. Put them into a pot of salted, boiling water and cook until tender. Then drain and mash up with 6 tablespoons of olive oil and a good swig of milk. Season to taste with salt, pepper and lemon juice. If you want to get your mash really smooth and creamy you can use a spatula to push the potato through a sieve once or twice. It doesn’t make it taste any better but it will make it silky smooth, shiny and lovely. Just depends if you can be bothered, really. If it needs thinning with a little extra milk, feel free.

To roast the monkfish, heat a large ovenproof frying pan, add a splash of olive oil and fry the fillets in the pan for 2 minutes. Then turn them over and put the pan in your preheated oven for 6 to 8 minutes, depending on the thickness of the fillets.

To grill, place the the butterflied fillets on a hot griddle pan and cook for about 3 minutes on each side, depending on the thickness. Whichever way you cook it serve the fish and the juices with a good dollop of the mashed potato, the black olive sauce and a little rocket dressed with the extra virgin olive oil, lemon juice and salt and pepper. Really, really good.

• from Cook with Jamie

Jamie Oliver's Slow-roasted Pork Belly with Braised Fennel

The post where we shared our attempt at the slow roasted pork shoulder from Jamie Oliver's latest cookbook Cook With Jamie (thank you again Rose - Paul has made some incredible meals with your gift!) has been my most googled post of late. Well, now that this is up the hits should just go through the roof because it is another slow-roasted pork recipe. Based upon my site counter I can only assume that slow-roasted pork is all the rage in the UK, Australia, and New Zealand. Welcome to the blog folks.

Pork belly... for years the forgotten part of the pig, it is now making regular appearances on menus; along with lamb shanks and shin of beef, it is beginning to upstage the old faithfuls of sun-dried tomato and rocket. Or at least it is right up there with them. And rightly so, because slow-cooked pork belly is delicious: the crunchy crackling and the meltingly tender meat are a winning combination.

Jamie Oliver's recipe for the pork is fairly standard: rub it in fennel salt and roast it briefly in a hot oven to set the crackling off, then turn the oven right down and cook it slowly to tenderize the meat. But Jamie's recipe takes the fennel theme further: the pork is cooked on top of fennel bulbs tossed in thyme, olive oil and garlic. After an hour, add a bottle of white wine to the tray. The wine and the garlic, thyme and fennel make for a delicious sauce, which flavours the meat as it cooks. The meat emerges beautifully tender, the crackling sublime and the 'gravy' a winey, garlicky jus.

Jamie Oliver's Slow-roasted Pork Belly with Braised Fennel

1 4 - 5 lb pork belly
2 tablespoons fennel seeds
sea salt
freshly ground black pepper
4 bulbs of fennel, cut into sixths, herby tops removed and reserved
a small bunch of thyme, leaves removed
5 cloves of garlic, unpeeled
olive oil
1 750 ml bottle of wine

Preheat the oven to its maximum temperature.

Using an extremely sharp knife, score the skin of the pork belly in deep vertical lines. Try to get them as close together as possible and as parallel as possible.

Crush the fennel seeds and 1 tablespoon of sea salt until you have a fine powder. Massage this powder into the skin.

In a roasting pan toss the fresh fennel, thyme, garlic, olive oil, and some salt and pepper. Place the pork belly (skin side up) on top.

Put the pan in the preheated oven. After 10 minutes turn the heat down to 325 degrees and roast the pork for a further hour.

After 1 hour at 325 degrees, remove the pan from the oven and drain off the fat. Add the white wine and stir.

Put the pan back in the oven for another hour.

Remove the pan from the oven. Remove the fennel from the pan using a slotted spoon. Keep it warm.

Put the pork back into the oven for a further hour until the skin is golden and crisp. If the wine starts to evaporate during this time, add a splash more wine, or a splash of water.

Allow the pork to rest on a cutting board for 10 minutes.

Carve the meat into chunks and serve with on top of the braised fennel, a splash of jus, and the reserved fennel fronds sprinkled on top.

Jamie - are you listening? You may annoy me with your splashes of this, glugs of olive oil, and knobs of butter but this was bloody excellent! Thank you, thank you, thank you!

Mushroom and Goat Cheese Strudel with Balsamic Syrup

We made this for the first course of our Easter dinner. After I posted a picture I was asked for the recipe. Jessica thought that it would be a great thing to make with some of the goat cheese she intends to buy when she is in provence in a few weeks. Lucky gal. Here you go Jessica!

This recipe was originally from the October 1999 Bon Appetit magazine. Based upon the information on their web site it looks as if it was a reader request recipe from Matt's in the Market in Seattle, Washington. I've made this many times before because it is one of those dishes that impresses the heck out of folks with little effort on your part. Everyone loves it.

Mushroom and Goat Cheese Strudel with Balsamic Syrup

2 tablespoons plus 6 teaspoons olive oil
1/2 cup thinly sliced shallots
4 garlic cloves, minced
1 pound mushrooms, chopped
1/4 cup Sherry wine vinegar
1/3 cup dry Sherry
2 tablespoons finely chopped fresh parsley

3 fresh phyllo pastry sheets or frozen, thawed (I actually used six sheets this time to make a thicker crust)
1/2 cup crumbled soft fresh goat cheese (such as Montrachet)

1/2 cup balsamic vinegar
1 tablespoon mild-flavored (light) molasses

Heat 2 tablespoons oil in heavy large skillet over medium heat. Add shallots and garlic; sauté 4 minutes. Increase heat to high. Add mushrooms; sauté until tender and golden, about 15 minutes. Add Sherry wine vinegar, then Sherry; boil until almost all liquid evaporates, about 6 minutes. Season with salt and pepper. Cool. Mix in 2 tablespoons parsley.

Place 1 phyllo sheet on work surface. Brush with 2 teaspoons oil. Top with second phyllo sheet; brush with 2 teaspoons oil. Top with third phyllo sheet. Sprinkle cheese along 1 long side of phyllo, 1 inch in from edge. Spoon mushroom mixture over cheese. Fold short ends over. Starting at long filled side, roll phyllo up tightly. Place seam side down on baking sheet. Brush with remaining 2 teaspoons oil. Using long sharp knife, score top of strudel through phyllo, making 8 evenly spaced cuts. (Can be prepared 4 hours ahead. Cover; chill.)

Preheat oven to 375°F. Bake strudel until golden brown, about 50 minutes.

Meanwhile, boil balsamic vinegar and molasses in heavy small saucepan over medium heat until reduced to 2 1/2 tablespoons, about 10 minutes. Cool.

Using serrated knife, cut hot strudel at score marks into 8 rounds. Drizzle balsamic syrup onto each of 4 plates. Place 2 slices of strudel over syrup on each plate.

Jamie Oliver's Pan-fried Steak with Chianti Butter Sauce and Olive Oil Mashed Potatoes

It would appear that nothing brings traffic to a blog quite like a post about celebrities without underwear, Duff's chicken wings (if you're in the area - do check them out, based upon the number of click throughs searching for information they must be quite popular) or anything by Jamie Oliver. So in the interest of generating more clicks . . .

My sister gave Paul this cookbook for Christmas. It is Jamie Oliver's attempt to help everyone learn to be a better cook. We were very happy with Jamie's last cookbook Jamie's Italy so we were excited to receive this one. The book is fairly well-written (once you get used to Jamie's hyper and casual style) with some great recipes.

Over the weekend Paul was flipping through the book looking for something to make for 'his' dinner (he cooks one night a week to give me a break). He stopped on page 158 and said 'I think I'd like to make that.' So make it, he did. I was a bit surprised at his choice because he isn't much of a red meat eater, I however am a true carnivore so was thrilled at the opportunity for a nice rare steak.

He found the recipe to be fairly easy to follow and I can attest to the fact that it tasted great! It is a very simple, yet rewarding, way of cooking a steak. You only end up with a small amount of sauce to drizzle over the steak but it will be more than enough.

Jamie Oliver's Pan-fried Steak with Chianti Butter Sauce and Olive Oil Mashed Potatoes

For the olive oil mash:

14 oz potatoes, peeled and chopped
sea salt
freshly ground black pepper
olive oil
1/4 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
1 tablespoon butter

for the steak:

2 7 oz sirloin steaks, 1 inch thick, fat scored
sea salt
freshly ground black pepper
olive oil

for the sauce:

3 tablespoons butter
2 shallots, peeled and finely diced
2 sprigs of fresh thyme, leaves picked
1 cup chianti

a few sprigs watercress
good quality extra virgin olive oil

Put the potatoes in a large pot of salted water. Bring to a boil and simmer until the potatoes are tender. Drain them in a colander and allow to sit for 5 minutes to steam away any excess moisture. Return the potatoes to the pan and mash, stirring in a large 'glug' (what's a glug Jamie you goof?), the cheese, and butter. Taste, season with the salt and pepper. Cover to keep warm.

Heat a heavy frying pan, large enough to cook both steaks at once without them touching. Season steaks with salt and pepper. Brush with olive oil. Using a pair of tongs, hold the steaks fatty-edge down in the frying pan to render and colour the fat. When the fat is golden, fry the steaks for eight minutes in total for medium-rare, turning them every minute. Remove from pan to rest.

Turn the heat down and add 1 tablespoon of butter to the pan. Fry the shallots and thyme for 4 minutes. Pour the wine in and reduce it by half. Pour in the juices from the steaks (we let them rest on a large plate covered with foil to capture all of the juices). Add the remaining 2 tablespoons of butter and remove the pan from the heat. Stir briskly to emulsify the sauce. This will make a simple red wine sauce.  Taste and season.

To plate - place a quantity of mashed potatoes on each plate. Slice the steak and arranges slices on top of the mashed potatoes. Drizzle the sauce over top. Arrange watercress on the side. Drizzle the plate with good quality extra virgin olive oil.

Jamie Oliver's Roasted White Fish Wrapped in Bacon with Lemon Mayonnaise and Asparagus

My sister gave Paul this cookbook for Christmas. It is Jamie Oliver's attempt to help everyone learn to be a better cook. We were very happy with Jamie's last cookbook Jamie's Italy so we were excited to receive this one. The book is fairly well-written (once you get used to Jamie's hyper and casual style) with some great recipes.

Over the weekend Paul was flipping through the book looking for something to make for 'his' dinner (he cooks one night a week to give me a break). He stopped on page 222 and said 'I think I'd like to make that.' So make it, he did.

He found the recipe to be fairly easy to follow and I can attest to the fact that it tasted great! The flavour combinations of the fish with the lemon, rosemary, and salty bacon were wonderful. As Paul said 'this is a keeper'.

This recipe would work well with any robust white fish such as haddock (which we used), monkfish, whiting, or pollack. You can use bacon or pancetta. We went with the pancetta. We served this with rice.

Jamie Oliver's Roasted White Fish Wrapped in Bacon with Lemon Mayonnaise and Asparagus

4×200g/7oz white fish fillets, cut 2.5cm/1 inch thick, skinned and pinboned
2 sprigs fresh rosemary, leaves picked and very finely chopped
zest of 2 lemons
freshly ground black pepper
16 rashers of thinly sliced, smoked streaky bacon or pancetta
Olive oil
4 tablespoons mayonnaise
2 large bunches of asparagus

1. Preheat the oven to 200c/400f/gas 6.
2. Season the fillets with the rosemary, grated lemon zest, and freshly ground pepper
3. Lay 4 pieces of the bacon overlapping, put a fish fillet on top and wrap the rashers around it, repeat with the remaining bacon and fish.
4. Gently heat a ovenproof frying pan, add a splash of olive oil and lay the fish with the best looking side facing up.
5. Fry for a minute, then place in the oven for 10-12 minutes til the fish is cooked and the bacon is crisp and golden.
6. While the fish is cooking in the oven mix the mayo with the lemon juce and some freshly ground pepper.
7. Cook the asparagus to your preferred tenderness.
8. Serve with the mayo dizzled over the fish and asparagus.

Asparagus and Gruyere Tart

This is my entry for this week's Weekend Herb Blogging round up.  It seem like the perfect thing for a Valentine week round up. The blogging event was started by Kalyn from Kalyn's Kitchen.This week's host is Erin from The Skinny Gourmet - be sure to pop by to see what other bloggers have come up with.

We decided that our big Valentine's Dinner will be tomorrow so I wanted something light tonight. I was inspired by a post from Palma to make this tart. I had to modify the recipe a bit because I didn't have a heart shaped tart tin - I did have a heart shaped spring form pan however. The resulting tart was far thicker than the one depicted in the original Gourmet magazine. I added more eggs, cheese, and increased the cooking time. Other than that it was a HUGE hit!

Asparagus and Gruyere Tart

3 lb thick white or green asparagus, trimmed to 6 inches and peeled
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt plus additional for sprinkling
1 cup heavy cream
2 large eggs
1/4 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
1 cup finely grated Gruyère

Make crust: Roll out pastry dough on a floured surface into a 15 1/2-inch round. Transfer to pizza pan by rolling dough around rolling pin and unrolling it across pan. Trim edge just enough to make even, then fold over and pinch to form a 1/2-inch-high, double-thick side. Prick bottom of shell all over with a fork and chill until firm, at least 30 minutes.

Preheat oven to 375°F.

Line shell with foil and fill with pie weights or raw rice. Bake in middle of oven until sides are firm, about 20 minutes. Remove foil and weights carefully and bake shell until golden, about 10 minutes more, then cool.

Prepare filling while shell cools: Layer asparagus on a steamer rack, sprinkling each layer with kosher salt to taste. Steam, covered, over boiling water until completely tender but not mushy, about 8 minutes for green asparagus or 12 for white, then transfer to a bowl of ice water to stop cooking. Drain well and pat dry with paper towels.

Whisk together cream, eggs, 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt, and nutmeg, then season lightly with pepper. Pour custard evenly in tart shell.

Top filling and bake tart: Sprinkle custard with two thirds of cheese, then arrange spears in custard, tips out (like the spokes of a wheel). Sprinkle remaining cheese over top.

Bake tart in middle of oven until custard is set, about 20 minutes.

Then broil tart 2 to 3 inches from heat until golden, 1 to 2 minutes.

Black Pepper and Sour Cream Pastry Dough

2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon salt
3/4 teaspoon black pepper
3/4 teaspoon sugar
11/4 sticks (10 tablespoons) cold unsalted butter, cut into bits
1/3 cup cold vegetable shortening
3 tablespoons sour cream
3 tablespoons ice water

Blend together flour, salt, pepper, sugar, butter, and shortening with your fingertips or a pastry blender until most of mixture resembles coarse meal with remainder in small (roughly pea-size) lumps.

Stir together sour cream and ice water, then stir into dough with a fork until incorporated. Gather dough into a ball.

Flatten dough into a 6-inch square on a lightly floured surface. Roll out into a roughly 18- by 6-inch rectangle and fold into thirds (like a letter) to form a 6-inch square.

Turn dough so an open-ended side is nearest you, then roll out dough into an 18- by 6-inch rectangle again, dusting work surface with flour as necessary. Fold into thirds same as above.

Repeat rolling and folding 1 more time, then chill dough, wrapped in plastic wrap, at least 1 hour.

Asparagus Tips (pun intended)

Choose carefully when buying fresh asparagus. Look for bright green stalks with tightly closed, compact tips. Stalks should be straight, firm and about 6 to 8 inches in length. Try to avoid asparagus with white butts because the white portion is unusable. One pound of fresh asparagus will make 4 servings.

Store fresh asparagus by wrapping the bottom of the stalks in a damp paper towel. Put them in a plastic bag and refrigerate. Plan to use within 2 days.

Prepare fresh asparagus by first breaking off the butt end of each spear where it snaps easily. Save the woody bases for soup stock if desired. Next, wash the stalks thoroughly and carefully to remove any sand from under scales.

Preparing Asparagus

Cook asparagus by steaming, boiling, microwaving, oven-roasting, or stir frying.

• To Steam: Lay asparagus in steamer basket and place over boiling water in saucepan. Cover and steam 5 to 7 minutes until asparagus is tender-crisp.
• To Microwave: Place 1 lb. washed asparagus spears in microwave-safe dish. Add 2 tbsp. water. Cover. Cook at HIGH for 4 to 6 minutes, rearranging spears once so bottom spears are moved to top until tender crisp. Keep covered until ready to serve.
• To Boil: Place asparagus, uncovered, in a skillet or saucepan and cover with boiling water. Boil for 5 to 7 minutes.
• To Oven-roast: Arrange 1 or 2 lbs. of asparagus spears in a single layer in a large shallow baking dish. Drizzle with 1 to 2 tbsp. vegetable oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Bake, uncovered, at 500 deg. F. (260 C.) for 8 to 10 minutes or until tender but still slightly firm.
• To Stir-fry: Cut asparagus into 1 inch pieces and cook in skillet or wok, using equal amounts of butter or oil, for 5 to 7 minutes.

Freezing: Prepare the asparagus as you would for cooking, then blanch. Group the stalks in small bundles. Bring large pot of water to boil. Drop the asparagus bundles into boiling water. After the water returns to boil, boil for one minute. Quickly lift out the stalks and immerse them into cold water. Leave for two minutes. Drain well, pat dry and package the asparagus in freezer bags. Seal and date package. Freeze immediately. Asparagus may be stored one year at -18 deg.C.

Asparagus is...

• Low in calories; just 20 calories per serving (8 medium spears)
• Fat and cholesterol free
• An excellent source of folacin
• A leading source of glutahione
• A good source of protein
• A significant source of thiamin and vitamin B6
• One of the richest sources of rutin, a drug which strenghtens capillary walls.

Asparagus is the leading natural source for two of nutrients that prevent disease and promote a healthy body: folacin and glutathione.

Honey Roasted Carrots

Lately I have been thinking more and more about the environmental impact of the foods we eat. It is the dead of winter here in Canada - guess what, there aren't many fresh vegetables to be had that are local. However, think of the carbon footprint created by bringing a bunch of asparagus to our table!

What to do, what to do?

One of the things you can find that are local are root vegetables which have been stored in cold storage up to now. I won't be able to survive on carrots alone but I will add more of them (and other root vegetables) to my diet in an effort to offset those imports.

These roasted carrots are one of my favourites, simple to prepare with few ingredients, they pack a rich flavour.

Honey-Roasted Carrots

4 large carrots, cut into thin sticks (you'll note from the pic above that I peeled the carrots and cut them ito 1/4 inch discs)
30 ml (2 tablespoons) olive oil
15 ml (1 tablespoon) honey
15 ml (1 tablespoon) chopped fresh thyme
Salt and pepper

With the rack in the middle position, preheat the oven to 220°C (425°F). Line a baking sheet with non-stick aluminum foil.

In a bowl, combine all the ingredients. Spread the carrots evenly on the baking sheet. Season with salt and pepper. Roast until tender and lightly browned, about 25 minutes. Season with salt and pepper.

Yukon Gold Gruyere Galette

a gratuitous self-promotion . . .

One of our photos from Italy has been entered in a photo contest.

Our photo is currently number 13 out of 467 photos.

You can vote by clicking here

Remember a 10 is good!

Feel free to e-mail the link to friends and loved ones!

*smile*

---

I made these as the side dish on Saturday for mom's birthday dinner. They were quick and easy to prepare and packed a nice balance of flavours. Ruth declared them to be perfect 'adult' scalloped potatoes (high praise since she adores scalloped potatoes). The best thing was that they were easy to pull together and could be made in advance.

When Kathryn commented on the post she asked for the recipe. Always willing to help out . . . here goes! This recipe origianally came form Fine Cooking. Because it was a special dinner I made individual galettes, I couldn't find my individual tart tins so I used individual springform pans - while I didn't get a nice fluted edge I still managed a nice presentation.

1/4 cup finely chopped shallots (from about 2 large shallots)
3 Tbs. extra-virgin olive oil; plus 1/2 tsp. for the pan (or use olive-oil spray for the pan)
1 lb. Yukon Gold potatoes (about 2 large or 3 medium), unpeeled and scrubbed
1 heaping tsp. very lightly chopped fresh thyme
Kosher salt
1/2 cup finely grated Parmigiano-Reggiano (about a 1-1/2-oz. piece, grated on a box grater’s small holes)
1 cup finely grated Gruyère (about 3-1/2 oz.)

Combine the shallots and 3 Tbs. of the oil in a small saucepan and bring to a simmer over medium heat. Reduce to a low simmer; cook the shallots until nicely softened (don’t let them brown), about 2 min. Remove from the heat and let cool completely (about 25 min. at room temperature; cool them more quickly in the refrigerator. if you like).

Heat the oven to 400°F. Rub the bottom and inside edge of a 7-1/2-inch tart pan with a removable bottom with the remaining 1/2 tsp. olive oil or spray with olive-oil spray. Put the tart pan on a rimmed baking sheet lined with foil.

Slice the potatoes as thinly as possible (about 1/16 inch) with a chef’s knife. Tip: If the potato wobbles, slice a thin lengthwise sliver off the bottom to stabilize it; then continue slicing crosswise. Discard the ends. Put the potato slices in a mixing bowl, add the shallots and olive oil along with the herbs and toss well to thoroughly coat the potatoes (a small rubber spatula works well).

Cover the bottom of the tart pan with a layer of potato slices, overlapping them slightly. Start along the outside edge of the tart pan and, making slightly overlapping rings, move inward until the bottom is covered with one layer of potatoes. Sprinkle the potatoes with salt (a generous 1/8 tsp.) and then sprinkle about one-quarter of the Parmigiano and about one-quarter of the Gruyère over all. Arrange another layer of potatoes, season with salt, sprinkle with cheese, and repeat two more times, until you have four layers of potatoes. (This is a messy job; you’ll need a damp towel to wipe your hands between layers.) Top the last layer with more salt and any remaining cheese.

Bake the galette until the top is a reddish golden brown and the potatoes are tender in all places (a fork with thin tines should poke easily through all the layers), 45 to 50 min. The bottom will be crisp and the sides brown.

Let the galette cool for 10 or 15 min. in the pan. It will then be cool enough to handle but still plenty hot inside for serving. Have a cutting board nearby. Run a paring knife around the edge of the galette to loosen it and carefully remove the tart ring by gently pressing the tart bottom up. Slide a very thin spatula under and all around the bottom layer to free the galette from the tart bottom. Use the spatula to gently slide the galette onto a cutting board. Cut into four or six wedges, or as many as you like.

For a special dinner, you can make potato galettes in individual tart pans. The amount of ingredients in the recipe will fill (with a little to spare) four 4-1/2-inch tart pans with removable bottoms. Baking times will be just slightly shorter, but remember, you can bake these ahead, remove them from the tart rings, and reheat them on a baking sheet. A mini galette makes a lovely bed for a slice of beef tenderloin with a little sauce.