Artichoke, Leek and Potato Casserole
The following post, photos, and recipe for Artichoke, Leek and Potato Casserole is a guest post from Julie of The Little Kitchen. Welcome, Julie!
I was so honored when Katie asked me to guest post. I love her site; I adore her recipes and photography.
This recipe for Artichoke, Leek and Potato Casserole appeared in the October 2011 Everyday Food magazine. When I first saw this recipe, I thought the potato was the star but in actuality, the artichokes and leeks were.
I have never cooked with Neufchatel cheese before (which is a lower fat cream cheese) so I was really excited to try it. This won’t be the last time I cook with it, it added a nice flavor to the casserole and didn’t taste at all like it was lower in fat.
I love, love leeks especially in potato leek soup. The best way to clean leeks is to rinse them as thoroughly as possible on the outside and peel any outer layers that are wilting like you would a green onion.
Fill a bowl with cold water and slice the leeks as directed. Add them to the bowl as you’re slicing the leeks (rub any dirt off of the leeks as needed) and allow them to sit for a few minutes.
Allowing the leeks to sit floating in the bowl will allow the dirt to settle at the bottom of the bowl. Carefully remove the leeks and shake off excess water.
Is it okay to admit that I cleaned this plate as soon I shot the last picture? I love the tanginess of the Neufchatel cheese along with the lemon juice. If you like a little less tartness, use less lemon juice.
This is a great little side dish for steak or grilled chicken or even as a vegetarian main dish for Meatless Monday, pair it with a salad or soup. {If you want to make it vegetarian, try making it with vegetable broth.}
I’m adding this casserole to our Thanksgiving menu this year, I can’t wait to have the rest of the family try this! You can’t have too many potato dishes at Thanksgiving.
What is your favorite potato dish for Thanksgiving?
Artichoke, Leek and Potato Casserole
Yield: serves 6
Prep Time: 25 minutes
Cook Time: 40 minutes
Total Time: 65 minutes
A wonderful twist on a potato casserole where the artichokes and leeks are the star

Ingredients:
1 tablespoon plus 2 teaspoons extra-virgin olive oil, plus more for baking dish
2 leeks (white & light-green parts only), sliced into thin half-moons and rinsed well
3 celery stalks, thinly sliced
14 ounce can of artichokes, drained and coarsely chopped
1/2 cup low-sodium chicken broth
1 bar (8 oz.) Neufchatel cheese, room temperature
2 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
salt & pepper
2 medium (or 1 large) russet potatoes, very thinly sliced
Directions:
Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Add oil to a large pan or skillet and bring to medium high.
Add leeks and celery. Cook for 8 minutes, until softened and a little browned. Add artichokes, chicken broth and cheese. Stir thoroughly until combined. Take skillet off heat and add the lemon juice.
Rub oil on the inside of a 1 or 1 1/2 quart gratin or baking dish with a paper towel.
Place half of the potato slices, allowing a little overlap, arrange in a single layer. Season with salt and pepper and add all of the artichoke-leek mixture on top of the potatoes. Arrange the rest of the potato slices on top in the same manner as the bottom layer.
Season the top potato layer with salt and pepper and brush with the remaining 2 teaspoons of oil.
Bake for 40-45 minutes, until the sauce is bubbling and the potatoes are tender and golden brown. Allow the casserole to rest for 10 minutes before serving.
From Everyday Food magazine, October 2011
About the Author:
Julie Deily, software engineer, blogs at The Little Kitchen where she shares her cooking and baking adventures. She’s the daughter of Vietnamese immigrants and resides in Florida.
Julie learned in college while she was living on her own that she shared her Mom’s love of feeding people. She also loves to volunteer and organize events.
Julie is a social media addict and you can follow her on Twitter, Facebook and Whatever Julie.
When it comes to Thanksgiving I’m a bit of a traditionalist – I love my mashed potatoes with turkey gravy. But I’d definitely make room on the plate for this beautiful casserole. I love Neufchatel too. Did you know it’s named for the region in France where it was created?
Also, if you want a quick start to this casserole, Trader Joe’s sells already sliced and cleaned leeks in their freezer section. Changed my life.
Hi Amber,
I didn’t know that! I love mashed potatoes too but I have another potato casserole that I make every year and now it’s going to be two since I’m adding this one in. ๐ I wish I had a Trader Joe’s near me!!!
DU-FREAKIN-LISH, Julie!
see you in a month, lady!
This is right up my alley, Julie! (I even have that same adorable yellow dish). Love the addition of the artichokes; it makes it that much more special for the holidays.
This looks perfect for Thanksgiving. I’m always shaking tradition on holidays and this is great for that! I think I may try this with sweet potatoes as well!
Thanks for a delicious recipe, Julie!
This would be perfect for a holiday dinner! I love the leeks and artichokes in the dish. It is a nice combination with the potatoes and cheese. I usually make a sweet potato casserole of some type for Thanksgiving, but this would be a nice addition.
That looks so delish Julie! I love the addition of artichokes – so fancy for the holidays ๐
I loooooove artichokes. Om nom nom!! I want this for breakfast now! ๐
Would you be mad if I said I don’t think I’ve ever had a leek before? I think I’m going to have to de-virginize myself with this recipe!
This sounds like a wonderful side dish but, quite honestly, I would be just as happy to eat a plateful straight.
I’m with you on that one. Side dishes have a way of becoming my entire dinner… especially when leeks and cheese are involved.
What a beautiful Thanksgiving side dish! I’m really into leeks lately – so I am pretty sure I’ll be making this before Thanksgiving! Great post, Julie.
Beautiful casserole! I love making Julia Child’s gratin with sausage myself. I love leeks though so this is definitely something I’ll have to try!
Can you believe I’ve never been a big potato fan? Sweet potatoes yes, but the rest, ehh. I do like fingerlings roasted w other veggies and herbs which I’ve made for Easter and Thanksgiving. I really love the list of ingredients in this recipe and will most def be making it soon.
I love leeks too – never tried artichokes with potatoes but it sounds like a nice combination, breaks up the starchiness of the potatoes I bet.
Yum! I’ve been trying to find a good use for leeks-thanks for the great idea!
http://www.gimmethegoodstuff.org
Looks terrific Julie!
Three of my absolute favorite ingredients in a nice warm dish–HEAVEN!
Some of my favorite ingredients! I can’t wait to try this.
This looks fantastic! I am totally all about the mashed potatoes on Thanksgiving (I’m super traditional that way!) but I would totally love to make this on another day!! ๐
Looks delicious! Do you think I could assemble it a day ahead? Could I even cook it a day ahead and reheat/recrisp it the next day?
This looks amazing! I don’t think I am going to wait for Thanksgiving to try it either. I just received a bunch of potatoes and leeks in my winter CSA basket, and would love a new potato dish to try!
Yum! This sounds fantastic! And where do I get one of those cute yellow casserole dishes, too? ๐
These look fantastic!!
Wonderful pictures and such a good flavor combo. I love artichokes and potato leek soup is my favorite, so I don’t know how this could go wrong!
Can’t wait to try making this.
I love that this casserole has leeks and artichokes, my fave.
What would be a good replacement for the Neufchatel cheese? I am not able to find that here.
I would use a basic brick of cream cheese, or even a light cream cheese.
This was a phenomenal recipe! I subbed camembert for the neufchatel and subbed white wine for the chicken broth and it was soooo good. With a nice side of a light white fish–absolutely AMAZING.
Lemon is too much in this recipe…would be a lot better without it!