ANNA PAN RECIPES

Steps:

• Heat large knob of butter with a healthy drizzle of olive oil over medium low heat until butter melts and just starts to foam. Shut off heat under pan.
• Using a sharp and stable Japanese mandolin — or the real French metal one if you’re lucky enough to have one — slice the potatoes into very thin but not paper-thin slices. 
• Arrange the slices tightly, careful shingling around the pan in concentric circles starting at the outer edge of the pan and working your way into the center. Season the first layer with a little salt. Repeat with each potato until you achieve three tight and gorgeous layers.
• Turn the heat back on under the pan at medium. Drizzle the potatoes with a generous pour of olive oil and dot a few more pats of butter around the pan of potatoes. Season with salt. As the pan starts to sizzle, you will see the fat bubbling up and spitting a bit. Put a lid on the pan and seal tightly for a minute or two, giving the potatoes a little steam bath, helping to soften and cook the flesh. Remove the lid and swirl the pan with a little muscle to see if the potatoes are binding together as their starch begins to heat up. If they slip loosely all around the pan, tuck the slices back into the tight circle using a heat-proof rubber spatula and allow to sizzle and cook longer uncovered. Bump up the flame a little if the cooking sounds and looks listless — you want to hear sizzle. When you start to smell the potatoes turning golden and crisp — like the smell of toast — swirl the pan again to confirm that the potato layers have formed a cake, and then flip the pommes Anna and cook on the other side also until golden and crispy. Slide onto serving plate or cutting board, season with salt, and cut into wedges.

Steps:

• Heat the oven. Arrange a rack in the top third of the oven and heat the oven to 425ºF.
• Peel and slice the potatoes. Peel 2 pounds Yukon Gold potatoes. Cut crosswise into 1/8-inch thick rounds with a mandoline or with a sharp knife. Divide the slices into 4 equal piles.
• Grease the pan and foil. Melt 3 tablespoons unsalted butter in the microwave, about 30 seconds on high. (Alternatively, melt on the stovetop.) Brush the bottom and sides of an oven-safe 10-inch nonstick frying pan with 1 tablespoon of the butter and sprinkle with 1/4 teaspoon of the kosher salt. Brush a thin layer of butter onto a sheet of aluminum foil big enough to cover the pan.
• Build the first layer. Starting in the center and overlapping the slices by about half, arrange one pile of the slices in a spiral pattern, making sure the bottom is completely and evenly covered. Use smaller slices in the center and larger slices on the edges. Brush with 1/2 tablespoon of the melted butter and sprinkle with 1/4 teaspoon of the kosher salt.
• Build the second layer. This time working your way from the outside in to the center (again using the larger slices on the edges), arrange the second pile of potato slices to build the second layer. Brush with 1/2 tablespoon of the butter and sprinkle with 1/4 teaspoon of the kosher salt.
• Build the last two layers. Repeat arranging the third layer, working from the inside out, then buttering and seasoning. Build the fourth and final layer of potatoes from the outside in. Brush all the remaining butter onto the top layer and season with the remaining 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt.
• Press and bake for 25 minutes. Place the foil butter-side down onto the potatoes, then weigh down the foil by topping it with a 9-inch cake pan or pie plate. Fill the cake pan or pie plate with pie weights. Bake for 25 minutes.
• Uncover and finish baking. Remove the weights and foil. Bake uncovered until knife-tender and the bottom is golden brown, about 20 minutes more.
• Broil the top. Turn the oven to broil on high. Broil until the top is golden brown, about 5 minutes.
• Unmold and serve. Gently shake the pan to see if the potato cake slides around easily. If it doesn’t, run a thin knife around the edges and slide the spatula underneath the potato cake to loosen. Invert a cutting board over the pan. Grasping both the board and the pan (careful, hot!), flip over and remove the pan. Cut the potato cake into wedges.