Sluttishly Easy: Cheesy Beet Gratin

No, not cheesy feet gratin. Cheesy BEETroot gratin. It's almost 100 times better than cheesy feet, I promise.

This is simply a beetier (and dare I say it, better) version of dauphinoise potatoes, complete with lashings of cream, garlic and gruyere cheese. It's a lot less carby than a potato gratin, and the volcanic magenta bubbles of cream are particuarly fetching.

If you don't want pink fingers for the rest of the week, wear rubber gloves when peeling and slicing the beetroot. And if you feel like adding a few slices of potato or apple into the mix, I certainly won't hold it against you.

Cheesy Beet Gratin (serves 4 as a side dish)

You'll need:

• A bunch of fresh beetroots (I used 4 large ones)
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 300ml whipping cream
• 100g gruyere or another hard cheese, grated 

Make it!

• First wash, peel and slice the beetroots into thin discs. I used a food processor to make wafer thin slices, but a good old kitchen knife will do just fine.
• Preheat the oven to 180c / Gas 4.
• Warm the cream and garlic in a pan to let the garlicky goodness infuse into the cream.
• Butter a roasting dish, then put in a layer of beetroot, pour over some garlicky cream, season and sprinkle a little cheese.
• Keep layering - beetroot, cream, seasoning, finishing with a good sprinkle of cheese on the top.
• Pop it in the oven for 45 minutes, or until the gratin is bubbling and the beetroot slices are tender (this will depend on how chunky your slices are).