Name: Chicken and Potato Gratin With Brown Butter Cream
Cook time: 45 minutes
Total time: 1 hour 15 minutes
Yield: 4 Servings
Ingredients: 3 lb. skin-on, bone-in chicken thighs and drumsticks; 7½ tsp. kosher salt, divided; 1 lb. small potatoes (such as fingerling or baby Yukon Gold), halved lengthwise; 8 oz. small or medium shallots, halved through root ends; 5 Tbsp. unsalted butter, divided; ¾ cup heavy cream; 2 garlic cloves, finely grated; ½ tsp. freshly ground black pepper; ¼ tsp. freshly grated or ground nutmeg; 8 sprigs thyme; 8 sage leaves; 3½ oz. country-style bread, preferably day-old, torn into large pieces; 1 lemon, cut into wedges (optional)

Photo of chicken gratin on a serving dish with a spoon two glasses of white wine and a plate on the side.

Photo by Joseph De Leo, Food Styling by Micah Marie Morton

This gratin is decidedly autumnal, inspired by a recipe from one of my favorite food writers, Richard Olney. Olney’s chicken gratin calls for making a savory custard, but here you’ll combine brown butter and heavy cream with aromatics for a flavorful and easy sauce instead. It’s still a luxurious dish. The breadcrumbs for the topping get toasted separately, so they stay crisp and the chicken (ideally seasoned a day in advance so the salt has time to work its way into the meat) and vegetables can get nicely browned and crisp too.

I love that this gratin can reinvent itself based on what’s available at the market (or in my fridge). In the spring you might make it with asparagus and young onions; in summer with tomato wedges, swapping in olive oil for the cream. I recommend serving this fall version with lemon wedges for squeezing over to cut the richness of the dish. A brightly dressed arugula salad would also do the trick.