This side dish is delicious and simple while being pretty enough for a magazine spread! We combined sweet potatoes, golden beets, and golden potatoes, but you can use other root veggies like red beets, parsnips, or Japanese yams!
On the Ingredients
- Sweet potato is a starchy tuber that is only distantly related to the common potato. Sometimes in the US, darker hued sweet potatoes are called yams, but technically, true yams are a tuber even more distantly related. Sweet potatoes are a great source of fiber, vitamins, and minerals. They’re particularly high in vitamin A with 213% of the daily value contained in one cup. Sweet potatoes are lower on the glycemic index than a common potato, making them much better for people with blood sugar issues. (Read more about sweet potatoes.)
- Potatoes are starchy root vegetables first cultivated in the Peru/Bolivia region at least 2,500 years ago. Today, they’re a staple all over the world. Potatoes contain vitamins, minerals, and antioxidants, though it’s important to note that much of those are in the skin, so peeling potatoes will reduce that amount of healthful components. Potatoes are incredibly versatile and can be used in a wide range of dishes from cuisines all over the globe.
- Beets, or beetroots, are the taproot of a flowering plant also grown for its greens. They have a sweet earthy flavor and can be enjoyed raw or cooked. They are also popular pickled as a cold side. Beets are very nutritious and, in fact, carry small amounts of nearly every vitamin and mineral the human body needs! They’re particularly high in folate, a vitamin that’s great for the heart. (Read more about beets.)
Simple Root Veggie Gratin
Servings
6
servingsPrep time
20
minutesCooking time
1
hourTotal time
1
hour20
minutesThis side dish is delicious and simple while being pretty enough for a magazine spread! We combined sweet potatoes, golden beets, and golden potatoes, but you can use other root veggies like red beets, parsnips, or Japanese yams!
Ingredients
2 medium sweet potatoes
2 medium golden meets
2 large potatoes
1 cup heavy cream (approximately)
salt and pepper to taste
4 oz gruyere cheese
Directions
- Preheat the oven to 400° F.
- Wash the root veggies thoroughly and peel as needed. Thinly slice the sweet potatoes (about 1/16 inch thick rounds). Put them in a mixing bowl.
- Repeat with the potatoes and beets, placing each in its own bowl. Pour about 1/4 cup of cream over each of the root veggie types. Salt and pepper to taste and mix with your hands, making sure each slice is coated with cream.
- Pour a 1/4 cup of cream into a casserole dish (roughly 8x10" or similar). Take the sweet potatoes and line them up in the dish, standing up so the slices are vertical. Repeat with the beets and potatoes, filling the casserole dish.
- Grate the gruyere cheese and spread it on top of the root veggies. Cover the dish with aluminum foil and bake for 45-60 minutes, until the veggies are soft. Serve hot and enjoy!
