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Lighthouse Inn Potatoes: A beloved dish and your new favorite holiday recipe

America's Test Kitchen on

Lighthouse Inn Potatoes — chunks of soft potatoes baked in a rich cream sauce and topped with golden bread crumbs — originated at an iconic hotel and restaurant located in New London, a popular seaside town in southeastern Connecticut. Executive Chef Leon “Wally” Walden, who worked there for nearly 50 years before his 1992 death, was known for many of his dishes, but Lighthouse Inn Potatoes was perhaps his most beloved offering.

One of America’s Test Kitchen’s test cooks grew up eating this dish at every holiday and was determined to make a version she — and everyone else — could make at home. To do so, she cooked starchy russet potatoes in light cream and butter and added a bit of baking soda to neutralize the potatoes’ tannins (and aid in creating a velvety, unbroken sauce). After topping the potato mixture with buttery cheesy bread crumbs, she baked the dish until the potatoes were bubbling and the bread crumbs were golden brown.

This homemade version is as good as the original — the potatoes are tender, the sauce is silky and rich, and the topping is salty, crunchy and satisfying. And based on the response from others who have made this recipe — now one of our most popular — we’re confident it would make Chef Walden proud.

Lighthouse Inn Potatoes

Serves 8 to 10

2 ounces Parmesan cheese, grated (1 cup)

 

1 cup panko bread crumbs

4 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted, plus 6 tablespoons cut into 6 pieces

Salt

Pepper

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