These are my favorite potatoes of all time. Buttery with a browned, crunchy top crust, Mom’s scalloped potatoes just melt in your mouth. I have loved these since I was a kid, and I still get a spring in my step if Mom says she’s making scalloped potatoes for my family.
To this day, when we’re done eating, Mom asks if I want to “clean the pan” before she washes it. That’s code for “scrape off the crusty goodness and shove the buttery, browned bits in your mouth.” As you can imagine, my answer is always, “YES!!” Of course, Dad is happy to assist with “cleaning the pan” as well.
This divine side dish relies on four simple ingredients (potatoes, butter, flour and milk), plus salt, pepper and onion powder. Nothing else is really needed.
Mom’s version is slightly adapted from the recipe in the vintage Betty Crocker’s Picture Cook Book — you know, the red and white one from 1950 that advises women to fix their hair and put on makeup, cologne and earrings before breakfast and housework. (I’ll get right on that. In my dress, apron and heels.)
Anyway, Mom’s scalloped potatoes contain extra spuds, butter and flour and are baked long enough to achieve the aforementioned crust from heaven. Perfection, I tell you.
The key to making this dish work, however, is slicing the potatoes thinly (1/8-inch), since they will be arranged in three layers. I’m so excited that my husband, bless his heart, surprised me with a new mandoline for this job. (Although it sounds like a musical instrument, a mandoline’s actually a nifty slicing device that enables you to adjust the thickness of each cut.)
My old mandoline was missing the handheld gripper that protects your fingers. I used it for years without it, occasionally shaving off the tips of my fingernails in the process. (Don’t worry, Honey and kids. I’m 85% sure I was able to fish them out of the food.)
Makin’ Betty proud, right here.
Enjoy!
Serves 10
Buttery potatoes with a browned, crunchy top crust -- a family favorite!
45 minPrep Time
1 hr, 20 Cook Time
2 hr, 5 Total Time
Save Recipe5 based on 1 review(s)
Ingredients
- 6 tablespoons salted butter, plus enough to grease the pan
- 3 pounds red potatoes (9 potatoes), peeled & sliced into 1/8-inch-thick rounds
- salt
- black pepper
- onion powder
- 2 heaping tablespoons all-purpose flour, plus 1 tablespoon flour
- 1 1/2 cups milk (whole or 2%) - enough to fill the bottom of the pan and barely cover potatoes
Directions
- Grease a 9x13 pan with butter. Peel all of the potatoes. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.
- You will be making three layers of potatoes in the pan. Start by slicing three potatoes thinly (1/8-inch thick). A mandoline works well for this. Blot the slices with paper towels to dry them a bit and arrange them evenly in the pan, overlapping slightly and stacking as needed. Add salt, pepper and onion powder. Sprinkle 1 heaping tablespoon of flour over the potatoes. Cut up 2 tablespoons of butter into squares and dot them over the potatoes.
- Slice three more potatoes as before and blot them. Arrange them in a new layer in the pan, stacking as needed. Sprinkle on salt, pepper, onion powder and a heaping tablespoon of flour. Cut up 2 tablespoons of butter and dot the butter over the potatoes.
- Slice your final three potatoes as previously and blot them. Arrange the potatoes in an even layer, stacking as needed. Sprinkle on salt, pepper, onion powder, and 1 even tablespoon of flour. Cut up 2 tablespoons of butter and dot the pieces over the potatoes. Pour enough milk over the potatoes to fill the bottom of the pan and barely cover the potatoes.
- Bake uncovered for 70-80 minutes. The potatoes are done when the entire surface is golden brown and crispy. The edges of the pan will have dark brown crust. (Watch the potatoes carefully starting at the 65-minute mark, since oven times vary.)
- Refrigerate leftovers for up to five days.
Notes
Mom bakes her potatoes at 350 degrees for two hours, but I sped up the process by baking them at 375 degrees. If using a larger pan such as a 10x15, use 12 potatoes, a stick of butter and slightly more flour.
(Recipe Source: Barely adapted from Mom, who slightly adapted the recipe from Betty Crocker’s Picture Cook Book, 1950)
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