
I kid you not. A week after I made Four Cheese Potato Gratin as a side for a holiday dinner, I dreamt of the wonderful aroma of four cheeses melting in warm milk. Even now, when I close my eyes and inhale, it’s as if I were standing in front of the open oven.
There is no better smell to warm the heart on a winter day.
I picked the recipe described by Kelly Jaggers in her blog Evil Shenanigans because of the mouth-watering photos she published. That’s her gratin above. Mine appears below.

I pretty well followed Kelly’s recipe–Click here for the recipe and more photos–except for the cheese:
- Instead of Fontina and Gruyere, I used Louis d’Or from Fromagerie du Presbytère in Québec;
- Instead of cream cheese, I used Comox Camembert from Natural Pastures Cheese in British Columbia;
- Instead of any sharp cheddar, I went with Applewood Smoked Cheddar from the U.K.;
- Instead of just any parmesan, I went with the real deal, Parmigiano-Reggiano from Italy.
The only thing I’d do different the next time is add a pinch of salt and pepper between layers and use more cheese than the recipe suggests, say, four cups total instead of three.
—Georgs Kolesnikovs
Georgs Kolesnikovs is Cheese-Head-in-Chief at CheeseLover.ca and founder of The Great Canadian Cheese Festival.