Recipe(tried): Pommes Anna (pom ANNA) for Cindy

Translated as "Anna potatoes," this classic French dish is a simple preparation of thinly sliced potatoes baked in a shallow dish or pie plate. Layers of potatoes are buttered and sprinkled with salt and pepper. The dish is then tightly covered with foil and the top weighted. After baking, the dish is inverted onto a serving plate and the potatoes turned out. The resulting potato "pie" is brown and crisp on the outside and soft and buttery on the inside. It's cut into wedges to serve.

Pommes Anna
Recipe Courtesy of Gourmet Magazine
Yield: 4 servings

1 1/2 pounds russet (baking) potatoes
1/2 stick (1/4 cup) unsalted butter, melted

Peel the potatoes and, using a food processor fitted with the slicing blade or a mandoline, slice them very thin, transferring them as they are sliced to a large bowl of cold water. Drain the slices and pat them dry between paper towels.

Generously brush the bottom and side of a 9 inch heavy ovenproof skillet, preferably nonstick, with some of the butter and in the skillet arrange the slices, overlapping them slightly, in layers, brushing each layer with some of the remaining butter and seasoning it with salt and pepper. Cover the layered potato slices with a buttered round foil, tamp down the assembled potato cake firmly.

Bake it in the middle of a preheated 425 degree oven for 30 minutes. Remove the foil and bake the potato cake for 25 to 30 minutes more, or until the slices are tender and golden. Invert the potato cake onto a cutting board and cut it into 8 wedges.