Pan-seared Ham Steak with Potato Gratin and Roasted Apples and Red Onions

It's been fairly cool and rainy lately, so it felt good to consider an oven-based dinner before summer starts to kick in and the oven is banned for the next few months in the interest of self-preservation and pre-menopause. I had a large and lovely bone-in ham steak left over from the weekend. Potato Gratin sounded very nice.

I checked out Food God Mark Bittman's How To Cook Everything and found a recipe. While flipping to it, I came across his master recipe for roasting veggies or fruit and apples caught my eye. I found an Epicurious recipe for Roasted Apples and Onions that uses some thyme and that will make for more efficient ingredient shopping.

This is not marrow.

I pan-seared the ham steak. And ate the marrow out of the bone over the stove like a possessed Mia Farrow in Rosemary's Baby. OK, I waited until after taking photo.

Mangia!

Potato and Onion Gratin
Adapted from Mark Bittman

Ingredients

2 to 3 cups heavy cream, half-and-half, milk, or a combination

1 1/2 pound potatoes, peeled and thinly sliced (I don't bother peeling them)

1 cup grated Gruyère or Swiss cheese (I used a combination of Jarlsberg and Gruyère)
1/2 cup red onion, sliced thinly

Salt and freshly ground black pepper

1 tbsp fresh thyme leaves

Procedures

Heat the oven to 375°F. Put the cream in a pot and heat until it's hot.

Layer the potatoes and cheese reserving onion for the top (be sure to end with cheese on top of onions) in a large gratin or similar ovenproof dish; sprinkle every potato layer with a bit of salt, pepper, and thyme. Pour in enough hot cream to come about three-quarters of the way up the potato layers.

Put in the oven and cook, undisturbed, until the potatoes are tender (a thin-bladed knife will pierce them with little or no resistance) and the top is nicely browned, 45 to 50 minutes. Serve immediately or keep warm in the oven for up to 30 minutes.

Roasted Apples and Red Onions

Courtesy: Epicurious

Ingredients

2 cups apple cider

3 tbsp unsalted butter

1 tsp coarse kosher salt plus additional for sprinkling

3 7-to 8-ounce red onions, halved through root end, each half cut into 6 wedges

2 1/2 tbsp coarsely chopped fresh thyme, divided

3 Braeburn apples (about 1 ½ pounds total), peeled, halved, cored, each half cut into 4 wedges (I can never find Braeburns. I used Fuji apples, and I don't peel them)

Preparation

Boil cider in large saucepan until reduced to 2/3 cup, about 28 minutes. Whisk in butter. Season glaze with 1 teaspoon coarse salt. DO AHEAD: Can be made 1 week ahead. Cover; chill. Rewarm; whisk before using.

Position 1 rack in top third and 1 rack in bottom third of oven; preheat to 425°F. Butter 2 large rimmed baking sheets. Toss onions in large bowl with 1 tablespoon thyme and 3 tablespoons glaze. Arrange in single layer on 1 sheet. Toss apples in same bowl with 1 tablespoon thyme and 3 tablespoons glaze. Arrange in single layer on second sheet. Sprinkle onions and apples with coarse salt and pepper.

Roast onions on upper oven rack 10 minutes. Place apples on bottom rack. Roast onions and apples 20 minutes. Remove both sheets from oven. Drizzle remaining glaze evenly over onions and apples. Reverse position of sheets. Roast 20 minutes longer.

Increase oven temperature to 475°F. Roast onions and apples until tender and slightly caramelized, watching closely to prevent burning, about 10 minutes longer. Transfer onions and apples to large bowl. Season with coarse salt and pepper. Sprinkle with remaining 2 teaspoons thyme.

Pan-seared Ham Steak

1 1-pound ham steak

Heat a skillet until very hot over medium high heat. Add ham steak and cook about 4 to 5 minutes a side, turning once until nicely browned.