Scalloped potatoes from scratch are easier than you think! A comfort food classic, these easy scalloped potatoes with cream have lots of herbs, spices, garlic and cheese. They’re super delicious and make for a fabulous vegetable side dish the whole family will love.
Whenever I think of scalloped potatoes, I always think of special occasions. It’s definitely not your average side dish. Though this recipe takes about an hour to bake, the prep time and ingredients are pretty simple.
Hubby purchased a bag of veggies from a co-worker who was selling them as a fundraiser for their kid’s sports team.
The bag was loaded with lots of potatoes, a lot more than what hubby and I would normally eat. They were local potatoes, so I knew that I had to make good use of them so cheesy scalloped potatoes it was!
Growing up, the boxed scalloped potatoes were pretty popular in our home. They were delicious, of course, but nothing beats scalloped potatoes from scratch. So it’s homemade all the way these days!
Ingredients for Scalloped Potatoes With Cream
- Russet potatoes
- Cheddar cheese
- Aromatics, like onion and garlic
- Fresh herbs
- Seasoning
- Flour
- Milk
- Cream
How To Make Them
Full details on how to make scalloped potatoes are in the recipe card below, but here are the basics:
- Layer half of the potatoes in a greased casserole dish.
- Top with half of the sauce.
- Repeat with remaining potatoes
- Then repeat with remaining sauce.
- Top with shredded cheese.
- Bake. You can garnish with thyme after, if you like.
Best Potatoes To Use
You want to go with something that is on the starchier side of things so it will lend to a lovely, creamy sauce. And who doesn’t love creamy scalloped potatoes?
I love to use Russets. Yukon gold would work great too!
Tips for Making This Recipe
- Slice the potatoes thinly and about the same size so they cook through equally. If you have a mandolin, (carefully) use that. Otherwise, slice by hand the best you can. I like roughly ⅛ to ¼ inch thick.
- Peeling the potatoes isn’t necessary, though I did. If you decide not to peel, just ensure that they are washed and scrubbed clean before cutting.
- If using dried herbs, use ⅓ the amount as fresh. For these scallop potatoes, I used 1 tablespoon of fresh thyme. If using dried, use 1 teaspoon.
- Want to lighten things up a little? Use half-and-half instead of heavy cream and cut back the cheddar cheese on top to 1 cup instead of 1.5 cups.
- Cheddar cheese was used in this easy cheesy scalloped potatoes recipe. Use a young cheddar over an aged. It has more moisture and melts better.
More Yummy Vegetable Side Dishes
Hope you love these homemade scalloped potatoes as much as we do! Hubby happens to think they’re the best scalloped potatoes.
If you make these scalloped potatoes with cream, be sure to leave a comment below!
Easy Scalloped Potatoes
Ingredients
- 2.5 pounds potatoes, peeled and cut into thin slices, approximately ⅛-inch to ¼-inch thick (about 7 to 8 cups)
- 3 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 1 yellow onion, peeled and minced
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
- 2 cups milk, I used 2% milk fat
- ½ cup heavy cream (whipping cream)
- 10 ounces shredded cheddar cheese, divided (2.5 cups)
- 1 tablespoon minced fresh thyme, plus more to taste for optional garnish
- ½ tablespoon minced summer savoury, optional
- 1.5 teaspoons salt
- 1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- ½ teaspoon paprika
- ¼ teaspoon ground cayenne pepper
- ¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg
- Cooking spray, or butter (to grease casserole dish)
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit for later.
- Melt butter in a heavy-bottomed saucepan over medium heat.
- Add onion to melted butter and cook, stirring often, until softened, about 5 minutes. Add garlic, stir, and cook 1 minute.
- Add flour and cook 1 to 2 minutes, stirring to form a paste. Whisk in milk and cook until heated through, about 2 minutes.
- Add heavy cream, stirring occasionally, and cook until it just starts to lightly bubble. Off heat, stir in 1 cup of cheese, thyme, summer savoury (if using), salt, black pepper, paprika, cayenne pepper and nutmeg.
- Spray a 9-inch x 13-inch casserole dish with cooking spray or grease with butter. Spread half of the sliced potatoes in the dish. Pour over half of the sauce mixture. Repeat with remaining potatoes and sauce. Top with remaining 1.5 cups of cheese.
- Cover with aluminum foil (ensuring that the foil doesn't touch the cheese) and bake for 30 minutes. Carefully remove foil and bake an additional 30 minutes until bubbly and cheese is golden. You can garnish to taste (if desired) with a little more thyme. Serve and enjoy!
Notes
- Slice the potatoes thinly and about the same size so they cook through equally. If you have a mandolin, (carefully) use that. Otherwise, slice by hand the best you can. I like roughly ⅛ to ¼ inch thick.
- Peeling the potatoes isn’t necessary, though I did. If you decide not to peel, just ensure that they are washed and scrubbed clean before cutting.
- If using dried herbs, use ⅓ the amount as fresh. For these scalloped potatoes, I used 1 tablespoon of fresh thyme. If using dried, use 1 teaspoon.
- Cheddar cheese was used in this easy cheesy scalloped potatoes recipe. Use a young cheddar over an aged. It has more moisture and melts better.
Nutrition (estimate only)
Nutrition information is provided as a courtesy and should be considered an estimate only. Ingredients can vary and Girl Heart Food makes no guarantees to the accuracy of this information. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.
A note on times provided: appliances vary, any prep and/or cook times provided are estimates only.
Tried this recipe?
If you do make this recipe, thank you!! It would mean so much if you could leave a comment below. Love to know how you enjoyed it, and it helps other readers too!
