potatoes au gratin with bacon, shallots, jalapeño and cheddar.

Thick applewood bacon from the deli makes all the difference. 

And I mean it.

Yukon Gold potatoes.

I blew it big time.

I put this in the oven and set the timer to one hour. Then I set myself on the sofa (because I still cannot make out lay vs lie past tense and I just give up using that ridiculous impossible word) but didn't know how exhausted I was. I fell asleep. And not just regular sleep either. I fell deeply asleep and did not hear the bell ringing. I guess it rings for one minute then quits. I'm guessing.

So the the whole thing cooked w-a-a-a-a-a-y longer than it should have. 

And while I was sleeping I dreamt the most incredible music. Emotional music that pulls on your heartstrings. Nostalgic and sad. And in the dream I was thinking, "Man, those advertisements sure do get emotional." When I woke up I realized the t.v. was on Netflix and they don't have advertisements. The show I was watching was Dark, an import with dubbing and exceeding slow dialog but also a vehicle for a wide variety of music. It's a ridiculously complex story about time travel and now I'm interested in watching again for the bits that I missed. 

My potatoes were ruined. 

But not totally. They cooked at least twice as long and possibly three times as long as they should have, but on medium 350℉. The tops are extra crispy and somewhat burnt but not black. 

I ate one third the baking dish. It is delicious. OMG, this cheese/bacon/jalapeño combination is good with everything. I had added 1 cup of milk and imagined that might be too much but it was completely absorbed or evaporated. My potatoes came out dry. Now I reheat them with additional milk. And they're still very good. 

I don't know why I don't do this more often. The dish is spectacular.