Melissa Clark - Dinner: Changing the Game

Whenever its served, a scalloped potato gratin is usually the best thing on the table. With tender potatoes suffused with cream and herbs, and a burnished lid of melted, buttery cheese, there are few things more delicious. Thats why I think you should make potato gratin the centerpiece of your meal, rather than as a side dish to a juicy steak or a roast chicken. Or, if you really want both meat and potatoes, why not mix things up and make the steak the side dish to the gratin?

2 tablespoons unsalted butter, plus more for greasing the pan

3 large leeks (white and light green parts), halved lengthwise and thinly sliced

1 teaspoon kosher salt, plus more to taste

teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, plus more to taste

2 tablespoons chopped fresh sage leaves

2 pounds Yukon Gold potatoes, peeled

1 cups crme frache

cup whole milk

2 fat garlic cloves, finely chopped

2 bay leaves

4 large eggs, lightly beaten

teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg

1 cups grated Gruyre cheese (5 ounces)

TOTAL TIME: 1 HOURS

SERVES 6

Heat the oven to 350F.

Melt the 2 tablespoons butter in a 12-inch oven-safe skillet over medium heat. Add the leeks, teaspoon each salt and pepper, and the sage leaves. Cook, stirring, until the leeks are tender and golden, 7 to 10 minutes. Remove the leeks from the skillet and set them aside.

Using a mandoline or a sharp knife, slice the potatoes into -inch-thick rounds. In a large bowl, toss the potatoes with the remaining teaspoon salt and teaspoon pepper.

Add the crme frache, milk, garlic, and bay leaves to the skillet, scraping up the browned bits of leeks. Simmer gently for 5 minutes; then remove the skillet from the heat and discard the bay leaves.

In a large heatproof bowl, lightly beat together the eggs and nutmeg. Slowly pour the hot crme frache mixture into the eggs, whisking constantly while pouring, and set the mixture aside.

Wipe out the skillet, and grease it with butter. In the skillet, carefully layer half of the potatoes, seasoning the layer lightly with salt and pepper. Then scatter half of the leeks on top. Pour half of the egg mixture over the leeks. Arrange the remaining potatoes over that, season the layer with salt and pepper, and then scatter the remaining leeks over the potatoes. Follow with the remaining egg mixture, and then sprinkle the Gruyre over the top.

Cover the skillet with aluminum foil and transfer it to the oven. Bake for 40 minutes; then uncover it and bake until the cheese is bubbling and golden, another 20 to 25 minutes. Let the gratin cool slightly before serving.

A fried, breaded chicken cutlet is a wonderful thingcrunchy, golden, juicy within. Universally adored even when served simple and plain, they also take well to embellishment. This slightly fancier version is scented with cumin and citrus, and served with a sweet-tart cranberry chutney spiked with a little jalapeo. If youre pressed for time, skip the cranberry-kumquat chutney and serve this with a spoonful of mango chutney, or a dollop of lingonberry jam if youve got some in the fridge from a recent IKEA excursion (thats where I always stock up). Youre just looking to add something tangy-sweet to the plate to offset the richness of the fried cutlet.

This is a great dish all year-round, but if you swap turkey cutlets in for the chicken, its particularly apropos for a small Thanksgiving gathering.

FOR THE CRANBERRY-KUMQUAT CHUTNEY

4 ounces fresh or frozen cranberries (1 cup)

4 ounces kumquats, thinly sliced and seeded ( cup)

cup sugar

1 serrano or jalapeo chile, seeded and finely chopped

FOR THE CITRUS DRESSING

1 teaspoon cumin seeds

1 orange

Grated zest and juice of 1 lime

1 teaspoon ground cumin

teaspoon kosher salt, plus more to taste

Freshly ground black pepper

3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, plus more as needed

FOR THE CHICKEN

1 pounds thinly sliced chicken cutlets

cup all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon kosher salt, plus more as needed

teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, plus more as needed

2 large eggs, beaten

1 cups panko bread crumbs

1 teaspoon ground cumin

Olive or grapeseed oil, for frying

Dill sprigs, for garnish

TOTAL TIME: 45 MINUTES

SERVES 4 TO 6

Prepare the chutney: In a medium pot, combine the cranberries, kumquats, sugar, and chile. Cook over medium heat, stirring frequently, until the sugar has dissolved and the cranberries have begun to pop, 7 to 10 minutes. Remove from the heat.

Prepare the citrus dressing: Heat a small skillet over medium heat, and toast the cumin seeds in it until fragrant, about 1 minute. Transfer them to a medium bowl. Holding a Microplane over the bowl, grate the zest of half the orange into the bowl. Then juice the orange and add the juice as well. Grate in the lime zest and squeeze in the juice. Add the ground cumin, salt, and a few grinds of black pepper. Whisk in the olive oil. Set aside.

Cook the chicken: Pat the chicken cutlets dry. Place the flour in a wide shallow bowl and season it with teaspoon of the salt and teaspoon of the pepper. Place the eggs in another wide shallow bowl and season them with teaspoon salt and teaspoon pepper. Place the panko in a third wide shallow bowl and season it with the ground cumin, remaining teaspoon salt, and remaining teaspoon pepper.

Season the chicken cutlets lightly with salt and pepper. Dip each cutlet first in the flour, then in the eggs, and then in the panko, turning them in each mixture to make sure they are well coated.

Heat about inch of oil in your largest skillet over medium-high heat. Add the chicken cutlets (in batches, if necessary) and fry until they are deep golden brown and cooked through, 3 to 5 minutes, turning once. Transfer the cutlets to paper-towel-lined plates to drain; season them lightly with salt while they are still hot. Serve the cutlets topped with the chutney and drizzled with the citrus dressing.

Similar to the basic mac and cheese on the facing page, the peas, spinach, and a touch of garam masala give this a more sophisticated flavor without much additional effort. This is the kind of thing to make after a particularly exhausting day when youre craving a comforting, vegetable-loaded, and cheesy one-pot dinner that comes together in minutes. It also makes a terrific side dish to grilled steak or roasted chicken, one that vegetarians in your group can call dinner. Feel free to play with the cheeses and seasonings here. Any firm grating cheesecheddar, gouda, a young pecorinocan be substituted for the Gruyre, and chile powder, nutmeg, or cumin will work in place of the garam masala.

Kosher salt, as needed

1 pound regular or whole-wheat fusilli

1 cups fresh or frozen peas

cup heavy cream

9 ounces Gruyre cheese, grated (2 cups)

10 ounces baby spinach (10 cups loosely packed), coarsely chopped

teaspoon garam masala

Freshly ground black pepper to taste

TOTAL TIME: 10 MINUTES

SERVES 6

Bring a large pot of heavily salted water to a boil. Add the fusilli and cook until it is al dente, about 1 minute less than the package directions. If using fresh peas, stir them in 3 minutes before the pasta is done; if using frozen peas, 1 minute will suffice. Drain.