POTATOES AU GRATIN EPICURIOUS RECIPES

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 400°. In a skillet, cook the onion and 2 tablespoons of the butter over moderately low heat, stirring, until it is very soft. In a heavy saucepan, melt 6 tablespoons of the remaining butter over moderately low heat, whisk in the flour, and cook the roux, whisking, for 3 minutes. Add the milk, scalded, in a stream, whisking, and bring the sauce to a boil. Simmer the sauce, whisking, for 1 minute and add salt and pepper to taste.
• Peel the potatoes and slice them ⅛-inch thick. Spread about one third of the sauce in the bottom of a well-buttered 3-quart gratin dish at least 2 ½-inches deep, cover it with a layer of potato slices, overlapping the slices slightly, and cover the potatoes with one third of the onions. Sprinkle the onions with one third of the Cheddar and continue to layer the remaining sauce, potatoes, onions, and Cheddar in the same manner. Sprinkle the top with bread crumbs, and dot it with the remaining 1 tablespoon butter, cut into bits.
• Bake the mixture, covered with foil, in the middle of preheated oven for 20 minutes. Remove the foil and bake the potato mixture for 35 minutes more, or until the top is golden and the potatoes are tender.

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 200°F.
• Pat steaks dry and season both sides with kosher salt.
• Coarsely crush peppercorns in a sealed plastic bag with a meat pounder or bottom of a heavy skillet, then press pepper evenly onto both sides of steaks.
• Heat a 12-inch heavy skillet (preferably cast-iron) over moderately high heat until hot, about 3 minutes, then add oil, swirling skillet, and sauté steaks in 2 batches, turning over once, about 6 minutes per batch for medium-rare.
• Transfer steaks as cooked to a heatproof platter and keep warm in oven while making sauce.
• Pour off fat from skillet, then add shallots and half of butter (2 tablespoons) to skillet and cook over moderately low heat, stirring and scraping up brown bits, until shallots are well-browned all over, 3 to 5 minutes.
• Add Cognac (use caution; it may ignite) and boil, stirring, until liquid is reduced to a glaze, 2 to 3 minutes. Add cream and any meat juices accumulated on platter and boil sauce, stirring occasionally, until reduced by half, 3 to 5 minutes. Add remaining 2 tablespoons butter and cook over low heat, swirling skillet, until butter is incorporated. Serve sauce with steaks.