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Pommes Anna
Layered buttered potato cake
Pommes Anna: Paris potato cake of thin buttered slices baked crisp and golden
Pommes Anna was created in the 1860s at the Café Anglais in Paris and named after one of the fashionable ladies who dined there, and it is still a special-occasion side dish for roasts and Christmas dinners in French homes. Very thin potato slices are layered in overlapping circles with butter, pressed down and baked until the outside is a crisp golden cake and the inside soft. It is turned out like a tart and cut in wedges. The common mistake is not pressing the layers firmly, so the cake falls apart when turned out. Chef's tip: use clarified butter; it does not burn and gives the deepest golden crust.
- Total time
- 75 min
- Difficulty
- medium
- Serves
- 6
Ingredients
- 2 ¼ lb waxy potatoespeeled
- 3 ⅛ oz clarified butter or gheemelted
- 1 tsp salt
- ½ tsp black pepper
- 1 tsp fresh thyme leaves (optional)
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Method
0/6 doneStep 1: Heat the oven to 425°F (400°F fan). Brush a 24 cm ovenproof frying pan generously with some of the ⅝ oz clarified butter or ghee.
5 minStep 2: Slice the 2 ¼ lb waxy potatoes 2 mm thick, pat dry with a tea towel and toss with most of the remaining 1 ⅞ oz clarified butter or ghee, the 1 tsp salt, ½ tsp black pepper and 1 tsp fresh thyme leaves.
15 minStep 3: Lay the slices in overlapping circles from the centre outwards, pressing each layer down firmly, until all are used. Pour over the last of the ⅝ oz clarified butter or ghee.
5 minStep 4: Set the pan over a medium heat for 6–8 minutes, until you hear the butter sizzle and the bottom turns golden.
8 minStep 5: Press a sheet of baking paper on top and weigh it down with a smaller pan. Bake for 30 minutes, remove the weight and bake 10 minutes more, until a knife slides through easily and the edges are crisp and brown.
40 minStep 6: Loosen the edges, put a plate on top and turn the cake out carefully. Cut in wedges and serve hot.
Nutrition per serving
- Calories
- 260 kcal
- Protein
- 4 g
- Carbs
- 30 g
- Fat
- 14 g
- Fibre
- 3 g
Nutrition values are estimates.
KrazyBadal
Good to know
- How long does pommes Anna take?
- About 75 minutes in total: 25 minutes to prepare and 50 minutes to cook.
- How many people does it serve?
- 6 as written. Change the servings above the ingredients and every amount scales to match.
- Is it vegetarian?
- Yes. It has no meat or fish.
- Is it gluten free?
- Yes, as written. Check the labels on stock, sauces and spice mixes, which sometimes contain gluten.
- What can I use instead of waxy potatoes?
- Sweet potato, same weight (sweeter, cooks a little faster).
- What can I use instead of clarified butter or ghee?
- Butter, same amount (keep the heat a little lower, butter burns sooner).
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