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$64 Tomato home Buy the book See the garden Recipes from the garden Read an excerpt	Recipes from the Garden Leek Potato Soup Caprese Pasta Anne's Peach Pie Bread and Butter Pickles Anne's Applesauce Potato Apple Thyme Gratin Potato Apple Thyme Gratin "It was February, we were in the middle of a blizzard, and the thyme in the garden was buried under a winter’s worth of snow. In other words, it was the perfect night for a piping hot potato-apple-thyme gratin." — The $64 Tomato Some dishes taste great for the first bite or so (ginger ice cream comes immediately to mind), but grow tiresome thereafter. Others, like this unusual gratin of potatoes and apples, start slowly, but the subtle taste of this dish grows more appealing with every forkful. The apples release a good deal of juice, imparting a mild sweetness to the potatoes. Peel and slice 2 large Yukon gold potatoes, 2 large cored and peeled apples, and 1 medium onion into 1/8 to 3/16 inch slices. Strip the leaves off several sprigs of thyme until you have about a tablespoon. Heat 2 tablespoons unsalted butter in a medium frying pan and gently sauté the onion and thyme with a generous dash of salt and a few twists of pepper until the onions are translucent, about 10 minutes. Do not brown. Add 1/3 cup dry white wine, turn the heat up, and cook down for a couple of minutes until the wine is reduced by half. Add 1/3 cup water, another 3 tablespoons of butter, and 1 tablespoon sugar. Cook, stirring, until the butter is melted and set aside. Alternate layers of potatoes and apples in a buttered gratin dish, adding some of the onion mixture between layers, finishing with a layer of potatoes. Bake, covered with foil, for 45 to 55 minutes at 375 degrees until the potatoes are tender. Remove foil and sprinkle the top with freshly grated Parmesan or Pecorino Romano cheese. Return to oven for another 15 minutes or so until cheese begins to brown. Let sit 5 or 10 minutes before serving. Serves 4.