Scalloped Potatoes with Cream Cheese Bechamel Sauce and Crispy Onions

There are thousands of different varieties of potatoes grown across the globe, and an even greater quantity of unique potato dishes.  This humble ingredient lends itself perfectly to this luxurious dish, where the potatoes are sliced thin, covered with a rich bechamel sauce mixed with cream cheese, and topped with shredded cheddar cheese & crispy onions. 

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Scalloped Potatoes with Cream Cheese Bechamel Sauce and Crispy Onions

There are thousands of different varieties of potatoes grown across theglobe, and an even greater quantity of unique potato dishes.  This humble ingredient lends itself perfectlyto this luxurious dish, where the potatoes are sliced thin, covered with a richbechamel sauce mixed with cream cheese, and topped with shredded cheddar cheese& crispy onions.

Ingredients

For the Scalloped Potatoes:

• 4 Tbsp salted butter (softened)
• 4 large potatoes (thinly sliced)
• Kosher salt & freshly-ground black pepper (to taste)

For the Bechamel Sauce with Cream Cheese:

• 4 tablespoons salted butter
• 4 tablespoons all-purpose flour
• 2 cups warm whole milk
• 1 cup cream cheese (softened at room temperature)
• Kosher salt & freshly-ground black pepper (to taste)
• 1.5 cups shredded cheddar cheese

For the Crispy Onions:

• 2 large onions (thinly sliced)
• ½ cup corn starch
• 3 cups vegetable oil
• Kosher salt (to taste)
• ¼ cup fresh chives (finely chopped, as garnish)

Instructions 

• Preheat your oven to 375F, or about 190C.
• Grease the bottom of a casserole baking dish with 4 Tbsp of softened butter.
• Use a mandolin or very sharp knife to cut the potatoes as thinly as you can.
• *If you are using a knife here and cutting by hand, that’s totally OK—just cut the slices as thinly as you can manage.
• Arrange the thinly-cut potato slices in the buttered casserole dish so that the slices of potatoes are touching and are overlapping slightly.
• Season the potatoes with a sprinkling of Kosher salt and freshly-ground black pepper, and set the casserole dish aside.
• To make the bechamel sauce, melt the butter in a saucepan over medium heat.
• Stir in the all-purpose flour to create a roux.
• Cook this roux mixture over medium heat for about 5 minutes, stirring continuously with a rubber spatula so that it doesn’t burn.
• When the roux mixture begins to turn golden in color and smells like toasted nuts, begin to gradually whisk in the warm milk, ensuring no lumps form.
• After you incorporate each small additional of warm milk, continue to whisk until the mixture returns to a smooth consistency and absorbs all of the added liquid.
• Continue to cook the bechamel sauce, stirring constantly until it thickens.
• Add the cream cheese, and whisk until the cream cheese melts into the bechamel sauce.
• Taste, and season with Kosher salt and freshly-ground black pepper.
• Pour the bechamel sauce with cream cheese over the arranged potatoes, ensuring all the slices are nicely covered.
• Top the mixture with shredded cheddar cheese.
• Cover the casserole dish with aluminum foil.
• Place the covered casserole dish in the oven, and bake for 30 minutes at 375F.
• Remove the aluminum foil, and continue to bake without the foil for an additional 20-30 minutes, or until the potatoes are completely tender and the top of the casserole is golden-brown in color.
• *Note that your potatoes will cook more quickly if they are sliced first with a mandolin. If you sliced them by hand and they are a bit thicker, they may take the full 60 minutes in the oven to completely soften.
• While the potatoes are baking, make the crispy onions.
• Coat the onion slices in corn starch, shaking off any excess starch.
• Heat the vegetable oil in a deep pan over medium-high heat, until the oil is roughly 375F.
• Once the oil is hot, add the onions in batches, frying until they turn a deep golden brown.
• Remove them from the oil with a slotted spoon, and place them on paper towels to drain.
• Season the fried onions with Kosher salt right when they come out of the hot oil.
• After the potatoes are done baking, remove them from the oven, and top with the crispy onions.
• Let the dish rest for a few minutes before serving—it comes out of the oven piping hot!
• Serve and garnish with the finely-sliced fresh chives.

Notes

These scalloped potatoes will taste wonderful when reheated the following few days as leftovers.