No Fuss Potato Casserole

My good friend Jamie and I do a pot luck dinner at her house before the Yom Kippur fast. We serve meat and do not use dairy at the meal, in accordance with the rules of kashrut or keeping kosher. (While I don’t follow those rules in my own home, I respect the rules at her home.) I agreed to make a non-dairy potato dish that would taste good at any temperature, could be made ahead of time, and did not include dairy. 

My first thought was a kugel, a traditional Ashkenazi Jewish pudding, either sweet or savory, made with eggs. I do love sweet noodle kugel and could imagine how I would do a savory potato kugel, but my “dream potato kugel” would use dairy, a no-no in this meal. Besides, this potato dish had to taste good warm or room temperature (there might not be space in the oven to heat it up immediately before the meal) and potato kugel is typically best served hot. 

Paging through my Ottolenghi cookbooks for inspiration, I came upon a dish called “Danielle’s Sweet Potato Gratin” in his first cookbook, eponomously named “Ottolenghi”. The dish looked delicious but featured heavy cream, so like my dream potato kugel, it wouldn’t work for this meal. Still, the basic premise – standing thinly sliced potatoes upright in a dish, tightly packed and baked – seemed like a promising start. And it was. 

This no fuss potato casserole is a great make-ahead dish for any dinner or even a brunch. It has just 5 ingredients (not counting salt and pepper) and takes little time to prepare. While it cooks, all you have to do is take off the cover and raise the heat toward the end. For the oil, use a variety that has a high smoke point such as grapeseed or safflower, not olive oil. 

I mixed sweet and yellow (Yukon Gold) potatoes, which makes for a pretty color contrast, but you could do it with just one or the other. If using just sweet potatoes, find golden ones that retain their shape, rather than the orange-fleshed variety that are great for a traditional mashed sweet potato casserole. I used orange ones and so they did get soft, but when combined with firmer white potatoes, that wasn’t an issue. The thinly sliced onions soften to a velvety texture that melts in your mouth and the just the small amount of fresh rosemary sprinkled throughout scents the entire casserole. 

The proportions provided below are for a small batch. For the pot luck dinner, I’ll be tripling or quadrupling the recipe. It’s an easy recipe to customize by size – just make sure that the casserole dish holds the slices tightly upright. 

Print Recipe

No Fuss Potato Casserole Yum

An easy sliced potato and onion casserole, scented with rosemary and baked with no fuss.

Course

side dish

Cuisine

American

Skill Level

easy

Prep Time

15 minutes

Cook Time

55 minutes

Servings

Ingredients

• 8 ounces sweet potatoes preferably golden, thinly sliced
• 8 ounces yellow potatoes Yukon Gold or similar, thinly sliced
• 4 ounces yellow onion thinly sliced (about 1/2 of a medium-large onion)
• 2 - 2 1/2 tablespoons high heat oil + more for dish grapeseed or similar
• 1 teaspoon chopped fresh rosemary
• Kosher or sea salt and freshly ground pepper to taste

Course side dish Cuisine American Skill Level easy Prep Time 15 minutes Cook Time 55 minutes Servings Ingredients 8 ounces sweet potatoes preferably golden, thinly sliced 8 ounces yellow potatoes Yukon Gold or similar, thinly sliced 4 ounces yellow onion thinly sliced (about 1/2 of a medium-large onion) 2 - 2 1/2 tablespoons high heat oil + more for dish grapeseed or similar 1 teaspoon chopped fresh rosemary Kosher or sea salt and freshly ground pepper to taste

Instructions

1. Pre-heat the oven to 400 degrees F.
2. Using a mandoline or sharp knife, thinly slice the potatoes and put them in one bowl. Repeat with onion and put those slices in another bowl
3. Gently toss the potatoes and onions (separately) with the oil.
4. Place the potatoes in an oiled, oven-safe dish small enough to hold them upright. Add the onions in between some of the slices and on the sides.
5. Sprinkle generously with salt, pepper, and the chopped rosemary.
6. Bake covered with aluminum foil for 40 minutes.
7. Uncover, raise the heat to 425 degrees and bake another 15 minutes.
8. Serve immediately, cool to room temperature, or refrigerate and bring back to room temperature for serving.

Recipe Notes

I used a mandoline, but you can slice the potatoes and onions by hand as long as you make slices that are quite thin. Think the type of paper-thin slices that would work well for chips. The casserole should be small with 2-inch sides. My 7-1/2 inch x 5 inch casserole (with 2 inch sides) worked perfectly

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