Sweet Potato Gratin with Smoky Chipotle and Sage Cream

Sometimes, I want decadent food. Creamy and cheesy seasoned potatoes. And, this modern Southwestern take on the traditional fav from this food genre, Potatoes au Gratin, delivers on that end— a great dish for holiday tables or… when that pint of Haggen Daz won’t comfort your aching heart and soul.

While a relatively simple dish to prepare, it does take time to cook properly—about an hour and a half. This dish also requires you to use very thin sweet potato rounds—about 1/8-inch thick. Unless you have great knife skills, use a Japanese food mandolin (Benriner brand— original green one) or food processor to get thin, consistent sweet potato rounds that cook evenly. It’s also crucial you fry the fresh sage leaves till crisp with a grey-green color before you add it to the smoky chili cream sauce. This step goes at warp speed—about 8-10 seconds—so stay with the skillet. Don’t cut out this culinary technique—it magically transforms the overbearing, pungent raw sage taste to a rustic yet refined flavor that perfectly complements the caramelized sweet potatoes and smoky chipotle chili cream sauce.

Tip: This dish can be assembled a day in advance of serving time.

Sweet Potato Gratin with Smoky Chipotle and Sage Cream
Serves: 2 as a main; 4 as side

Ingredients
2 large garnet sweet potatoes
2 cups organic heavy cream
1 chipotle chili with 1 teaspoon sauce
½ teaspoon garlic powder
6 fresh white sage leaves
4 tablespoons avocado oil
1 ½ teaspoons seasoning salt (I recommend Paul Prudhomme’s redfish magic blend)
4 tablespoons unsalted butter
1/3 cup crumbled, good-quality cotija cheese

Preparation

Cut 2 inches off the ends of the sweet potatoes. Using a vegetable peeler, remove red skin and toss skins in trash. Place a Japanese Benriner mandolin (green original) over a large bowl (or use a food processor), slice the sweet potatoes into 1/8-inch rounds and set aside.

Pour enough avocado oil to film a 10-inch nonstick skillet (about 3 -4 tablespoons) and heat on medium heat until oil shimmers. Add sage leaves, and fry until color changes to a gray-green and sage becomes fragrant—about 1 minute. Be careful—do not let sage burn. Remove sage to a cooling rack. When cooled, cut off any tough stems with a kitchen shears, and remove any tough veins, then set sage aside.

Put cream into a 2-quart pot, and add 1 chipotle chili and 1 teaspoon chipotle sauce. Using a hand blender, pulse till just incorporated into cream. Using your fingers, crumble fried sage leaves into smoky chipotle cream, take off heat and set aside.

Butter bottoms and sides of two small gratin dishes, (about 5-inches x 7- inches x 1-inch). Layer with one layer of sweet potato rounds. Pour about 3 tablespoons of chipotle & sage cream over sweet potatoes, then smooth cream over rounds with the back of a large spoon or rubber spatula. Place another two layers of sweet potato rounds in gratin dishes. Dust with seasoned salt, and add another 3-4 tablespoons of chipotle and sage cream over sweet potato rounds. Repeat with 1-2 more layers of sweet potatoes (should have a 1-inch layer of depth), and top with chipotle sage cream. Cover with nonstick foil, and gently pat down sweet potatoes with your fingers.

Preheat toaster oven to 375 F. Place gratin dishes into oven and bake for about 52 minutes. (Sweet potatoes will still be a bit tough at this point). Remove foil and top with cheese. Return to the oven for another 25-30 minutes (potatoes should be tender when the tip of a knife is inserted, sauce reduced so it’s not “soupy” and cheese will be melted.)

Serve with a salad and a good-quality Chardonnay wine.