After several months of praise for the author, I came to the Pommes Anna. I don't know who "Anna " is, but I suspect it is someone Hamersley has it in for.
Where to start. First of all, Hamersley gives only a vague idea of potato quantity. "Three russet potatoes" can vary from 1 1/2 pounds in total to 4 1/2 pounds. Since this recipes is supposed to serve 6 to 8 people, I used 1/2 pound of potato per person times 8 people for 4 pounds total. I used 8 people based on the amount of butter in the recipe: 8 tablespoons equates to 1 tablespoon per person--an ample amount in my mind.
The potatoes are sliced and layered into an 8 inch cast iron skillet. Full disclosure: I do not own such a skillet so I used a 10-inch Teflon-coated skillet. In fairness to Hamersley, this was probably not the best substitution as cast iron holds the heat better.
At any rate, after tediously layering the potatoes and slathering them with butter, it was time to bake them. Problem number two: there is no estimate of total bake time! The potatoes cook covered for 20 minutes. You are then instructed to remove the lid and cook "until the potatoes are very tender when pierced with the tip of a knife." I left them in for another hour as this is when the potatoes were browned slightly around the edges as Hamersley described.
Problem number three: inversion onto a large plate so you can cut into wedges and serve. The inversion part was not a problem but the wedges were. Instead of coming out in a nice, brown, toasty piece as I imagined, out came a butter-soaked mess that had no intention of holding together.
Problem number four: it tasted as bad as it looked. The potatoes were still a bit raw tasting not to mention being very greasy.
The bottom line: There are plenty of wonderful pomme recipes in the world but this is not one of them.
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