Cheesy Potatoes Au Gratin with Yellow Squash and Zucchini

Potatoes au gratin, potato gratin, scalloped potatoes au gratin, gratin potatoes, potatoes gratin — these are all names used to describe the same deliciously rich and creamy dish.

With a combination of ingredients like potatoes, cheese and butter, this potatoes au gratin recipe is definitely a top pick if you’re looking for some healthy comfort food. For this recipe, I used tricolor fingerling potatoes, zucchini, yellow squash, goat’s milk, sheep’s milk pecorino romano and grass-fed butter to create a version of potatoes au gratin that is loaded with flavor and nutrients.

Many recipes for potato au gratin include bread crumbs on top, but I’m leaving those out, making this au gratin potatoes recipe completely gluten-free. Make these homemade au gratin potatoes tonight for a warm and satisfying side dish, sure to be a major crowd pleaser!

What Does Au Gratin Mean?

Gratin is a French culinary method that basically means you top whatever you like with a rich golden crust, commonly consisting of grated cheese, butter, egg and/or breadcrumbs. In the United States, we mainly call this recipe potatoes au gratin, but in France, they call it potatoes gratiné or gratin de pommes de terre.

The word “gratin” is said to come from the French word gratter, which means “to scrape” or “to grate.” Traditionally, potatoes au gratin are served in the same shallow dish they were baked in. Au gratin dishes can also be made with a variety of vegetables as well as pasta, meat and seafood. (1)

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Nutrition Facts

One serving of this potatoes au gratin recipe contains about: (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14)

• 220 calories
• 8.9 grams protein
• 15 grams fat
• 13 grams carbohydrates
• 1.2 grams fiber
• 2.9 grams sugar
• 37 milligrams cholesterol
• 1,419 milligrams sodium
• 56 micrograms vitamin K (70 percent DV)
• 2,061 IUs vitamin A (41 percent DV)
• 24 milligrams vitamin C (40 percent DV)
• 358 milligrams calcium (36 percent DV)
• 1.2 milligrams iron (6.7 percent DV)
• 130 milligrams potassium (3.7 percent DV)
• 6.2 micrograms folate (1.6 percent DV)
• 6 milligrams magnesium (1.5 percent DV)

Per serving, you can see this potatoes au gratin recipe isn’t high in calories or sugar, but it’s rich in protein and all kinds of vital nutrients.

Here are some of the key ingredients in this recipe that make it so nutrient-dense:

• Fingerling potatoes: Fingerling potatoes are a good source of fiber, iron and vitamin C. (15) The vitamin C in the potatoes actually helps the body to absorb the iron better, too!
• Goat’s milk: While typical potatoes au gratin recipes use heavy cream, this recipe includes goat’s milk, which is known for being easier to digest than cow’s milk, and many people with lactose intolerance do better with goat’s milk. Research using animal subjects has even shown that goat’s milk may be a better choice over cow’s milk as the first major source of protein after breast milk for babies. (16) Goat’s milk is also high in calcium, vitamin A and beneficial fatty acids. (17)
• Fresh parsley: You may not think that a little bit of a fresh herb could offer much when it comes to vitamins and minerals, but the large amount of vitamin K in this recipe is actually thanks to parsley! Vitamin K is essential to proper blood clotting as well as bone metabolism. Parsley also contains iron, magnesium, phosphorus, potassium, zinc, folate, vitamin C and vitamin A. (18, 19)

How to Make Potatoes Au Gratin

Fingerling potatoes have thin skin, so they don’t need to be peeled beforehand, but be sure to opt for organic since potatoes make the Dirty Dozen List. If you want, you can make this au gratin potato recipe one day ahead of when you want to serve it. Just make sure to keep it in the refrigerator, covered, and then bring it back to room temperature before you bake it.

If you’re a big fan of sweet potatoes, you can also substitute sweet potatoes for fingerling potatoes to create a tasty sweet potato gratin.

Before you get started, preheat your oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Meanwhile, in a medium-sized saucepan, over medium heat, melt the grass-fed butter. Next, add the goat’s milk and arrowroot starch, whisking continuously until the milk nearly reaches a boil.

Grate the pecorino romano cheese over a small bowl. Reduce the heat to low on the butter, milk and arrowroot mixture and add the cheese. Stir and melt completely until consistency is a cheesy sauce.

Remove from heat and add thyme, rosemary, garlic, shallots and parsley.

Have the fingerling potatoes washed and ready for slicing.

Thinly slice potatoes and zucchini.

Start layering the slices into a medium-sized casserole dish.

As you layer, alternate in the following order: sauce, potatoes, sauce, zucchini.

Keep alternating until you reach the final layer being sauce.

Cover with foil and bake for 1 hour. Then uncover and bake an additional 20–30 minutes or until desired color is reached. Enjoy!

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