Copycat Capital Grille Au Gratin Potatoes

First,  I hope you all enjoyed Soup Week and thank you to everyone that entered the giveaway for the KitchenAid 2-Speed Hand Blender. The winner was Rachel T. from Virginia. Congratulations Rachel!

WARNING! I went off my diet here a little bit folks because I just had to replicate one of our favorite side dishes at Capital Grille...Au Gratin Potatoes. My husband and I don't get to go out alone often as a couple, I mean really alone. No kids, no other couples, just us. So when the opportunity presented itself recently because previous plans had fallen through, I took a chance and logged into Open Table (love this site!) and booked dinner for two at one of our favorite restaurants, The Capital Grille. The closest chain is about 1/2 hour away, but it is also connected to a mall where we needed to do some Christmas gift returns anyway so it worked out perfectly.

If you've never been, the restaurant offers mostly steak and seafood options on their menu and the sides are ordered separately, similar to many other high end steak houses. Oh and the wine list is larger than the menu...we love our wine. :) In any event, we each just ordered a small filet as their portions are very large and opted to share two sides: Sauteed Spinach with Garlic and Au Gratin Potatoes. My husband really likes their Mashed Potatoes; which I've shared here on the blog before, but he never tried the au gratin version (which he loved!).

So after our evening out, I started to look around online to see if I could find the recipe. And...I couldn't. That is until I found a quick blurb on the restaurants' Facebook page where another guest had asked how to make the same recipe. The restaurant replied with the ingredients used, but not a specific recipe. Hence, my version of Capital Grille Au Gratin Potatoes were formed.

What did my family and I think of my latest experiment? Heaven. Pure Creaminess. Heaven. Yes, I said it twice. They were seriously THAT good and tasted just like the restaurant version. So if you're looking to treat your  sweetie this Valentine's Day with a decadent, home cooked meal, you will have to add this recipe for Au Gratin Potatoes to your menu. Trust me, you won't be sorry! ~Enjoy!


Copycat Capital Grille Au Gratin Potatoes
Prep Time: 20 minutes    Cook Time: 30-40 minutes      Servings: 4

Ingredients

• 3 Medium Russet Potatoes, peeled
• 3 tbsp. Butter, divided
• 2 Cloves Garlic, minced
• 1 tbsp. All-Purpose Flour
• 1 1/2 c. Heavy Cream
• 1/2 c. Shredded White Cheddar Cheese
• 1/2 c. Shredded Jarlsburg Cheese
• 1/2 c. Grated Pecorino Romano Cheese
• 2 c. Potato Chips
• 1 c. French Fried Onions

Equipment Needed 

• 4-7(ounce) Ramekins or Oven Safe Dishes
• Mandoline or Sharp Knife
• Baking Pan
• Small Saucepan
• Food Processor

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. 
2. Using a mandoline or a sharp knife, thinly slice potatoes and place into your ramekins. (You may have to cut the potatoes in order to fit them if the potato is too large). Place the ramekins on a baking sheet. 
3. In a small saucepan, melt 1 tbsp. of butter over low heat; then add the garlic. Saute garlic for 1 minute; then whisk in flour to form a roux. 
4. Stir in the heavy cream and mix until the roux has dissolved; then add your cheeses. 
5. Simmer the sauce for 5-8 minutes until all of the cheese has melted; then pour the mixture over the potatoes in each ramekin. (Fill as much as you can to the top leaving space to add your topping). 
6. While the sauce is cooking, add the potato chips and fried onions to your food processor and pulse until the mixture is crumbly. 
7. Melt the remaining 2 tbsp. of butter and add to the topping. Mix well then sprinkle the topping over each ramekin. 
8. Place the entire pan into the oven and bake 30-40 minutes until the topping is golden brown and the potatoes are tender. 

Nutrition Facts per Serving You really don't want to know, but if you do here it is! =)

Calories 700, Carbs 36.8g, Fat 56.4g, Protein 11.2g, Fiber 1.9g, Sugar .9g

*Calculations based on ingredients entered into Calorie Count and may not be 100% accurate.

Capital Grille Mashed Potatoes (Copycat)

Happy New Year! I hope you all had a wonderful holiday, I know I did. I usually host Christmas Eve and Christmas Day each year, and this year was no exception. It's fun, but also a little tiring. Especially because I still wasn't able to stand for long periods of time with my recent calf injury and my husband had surgery on his thumb shortly after that. By the time this holiday was over, I just needed to decompress and spend time alone with my immediate family; which we're not able to do very often. 

I'm not one for making resolutions each year, but with my husband traveling so frequently for business, we both agreed that this year we would try to carve out more time to spend with each other when we had the opportunity. So my husband and I rejuvenated by going into the city for a couple of days to see the sights, take in dinner at Remi (where I had some fantastic homemade rosemary gnocchi with roasted vegetables) and saw Les Miserables at the movies and Once, the musical (both excellent!). We had a fabulous time and the kids enjoyed spending some one on one time with Grandma and Grandpa. 

While trying to figure out which recipe I was going to share first in 2013, I was reflecting back on all of the food that I had made for parties and gatherings in December and I just had to start with these potatoes. My husband and I received a gift certificate to The Capital Grille (which is a national chain of upscale steakhouses) and we were finally able to go recently. The food was excellent for a chain restaurant and they also have an amazing wine list. This recipe should technically come with a warning as it is NOT a healthy recipe by any means, but they were so good that even my husband, who usually doesn't like ANY mashed potatoes, LOVED them. They're so buttery, creamy and made a wonderful side dish; especially with our ham I made on Christmas Eve. 

Capital Grille Mashed Potatoes (Copycat)

2 1/2 lb. Red Potatoes

1 Stick Butter

1+ c. Heavy Cream

1/2 tbsp. Kosher Salt

Directions:

1. Wash potato skins with a vegetable brush, then cube. 

2. Place the potatoes in a pot of cold water, bring to a boil and cook until the potatoes become soft when you insert a fork or tip of a knife into them. 

3. Drain the water then place potatoes back in the pot. 

4. Add the butter, 1 cup of heavy cream and salt and beat until whipped without lumps using an electric mixer. Add more cream gradually if needed. Serves 8 (5oz per serving). 

*Nutritional Information per Serving: Calories 319, Carbs 30.4g, Fat 21.1g, Protein 2.8g, Fiber 2.6g

*Calculations based on ingredients entered into CalorieCount and may not be 100% accurate.

Enjoy and Happy New Year! 

Times Square NYC