Potatoes dauphinoise

Preheat the oven to 170°C, gas mark 3. Put a large, heavy- based lidded saucepan on a low heat and add 75g butter. Once it’s beginning to melt, add the onion, garlic, bay leaves and thyme; season. Stir so that everything is coated in the butter, turn the heat right down and cover with a lid. Cook the onions for 10-15 minutes until they’re soft and translucent, stirring every so often and being careful not to let them burn.

Add the cream and milk, and bring to a gentle simmer; season. Grate in the nutmeg, then tip in the sliced potatoes and stir together, making sure the onions, cream and milk are evenly distributed and coating each slice of potato. Cook gently on the lowest heat for 5 minutes to start warming the potatoes through and get the starches going. Once everything has infused nicely, carefully remove any stalks of thyme and season if needed.

Grease a 2.5-litre ovenproof dish with the remaining butter and spoon in the potato and cream mixture bit by bit, making sure everything is spread out evenly. Finish with a twist of freshly ground black pepper, then cover with a piece of baking parchment, really pressing it into the potatoes, before sealing with a sheet of foil. Bake for 40 minutes, then remove the foil and parchment, heat the grill to high and put under the grill for 3-5 minutes until golden and bubbling. Let the dauphinoise stand for 10 minutes before serving.