Another example of the French Bourbon legacy in Neapolitan cooking, this gattò—from the French gateau—is a savory potato ‘cake’ made of mashed potatoes enriched with eggs, butter and grated cheese, a mixture you may remember from our recipe for crocchè di patate (Potato Croquettes). The filling for this cake is a combination of cheeses and cured meats reminiscent of the pizza rustica or the casatiello, two other Neapolitan classics. Its appearance, on the other hand, reminds me of a sartù, another French-influenced Neapolitan dish, only a bit squatter.
For a fancy occasion, the gattò can be treated just like an actual cake, baked in a springform pan and unmolded onto a serving dish, to be sliced into wedges. For a cosy family dinner, it can be baked and served still nestled in a casserole.
Either way, the ultra-filling gattò di patate is typically served, warm but not scalding hot, as a piatto unico—a one-dish meal—although a thin slice could also do service as an antipasto or perhaps a substantial primo.
Ingredients
Serves 4-6 persons
For the ‘cake’:
- 1 kg (2 lbs) potatoes suitable for mashing
- 4 eggs
- 75g (3 oz) butter
- 75g (3 oz) freshly grated Parmesan or Romano cheese
- A few sprigs of parsley, finely chopped
- Salt and pepper
- Milk (if needed)
For the filling*:
- 100-150g (4 oz) of mixed cured meats, such as cooked ham and salami, cut into very small cubes
- 100-150g (4 oz) of cheeses such as smoked scamorza and mozzarella, sliced or cut into small cubes
For molding and baking:
- Butter
- Breadcrumbs
Directions
Steam (or boil) the potatoes until they are fully tender, about 20-30 minutes depending on the size and quality of the potato. As soon as they are cool enough to handle, peel the potatoes and run them through a food mill or potato ricer into a large bowl, as if you were making mashed potatoes. Add the butter, grated cheese, seasonings and whole eggs. You can also add, as pictured, the cured meats to this mixture.
Mix everything very well until the butter is melted and the other ingredients well incorporated. If the mixture is too stiff to work with, add a bit of milk, a few drops at a time, until you have the texture you want.
Now grease the bottom and sides of an 8″ cake pan (or casserole) with the butter and line completely it with breadcrumbs.
Spread out half the mashed potato mixture on the bottom of the pan,
then arrange the cheese and (if you have not added them to the potato mixture) the cured meats on top.
Add the other half of the mashed potato mixture on top of the filling and even it out so that the surface is nice and flat. (This is an operation best accomplished with your hands—just don’t let any of your dinner guests see you…) Top the whole thing with more breadcrumbs and a few nobs of butter here and there.
Bake in a moderate oven (180C/350F) for about 30-45 minutes, until the gattò is cooked through and golden brown. (If the top is not quite browned enough, you can raise the heat for a few minutes before removing from the oven.)
Let the potato cake cool off for a good 20 minutes or more before serving. Unmold the gattò if you baked it in a cake pan, and serve it just like a cake. If you baked it in a casserole, just bring it to the table and serve.
Notes
This is a dish that calls for mealy potatoes, the kind you would use for mashed—not the waxy kind you would use for a salad or gratin. In the US, russets or Yukon Golds will do nicely.
This potato cake lends itself to all sorts of variations according to town and family traditions or personal taste. The meats and cheeses can vary according to family tradition, although many Neapolitans will tell you that the filling for a real gattò di patate must include smoked scamorza. Unfortunately, that can be hard to find outside the old country; in the US, a smoked mozzarella is probably the closest substitute that can be found in most supermarkets. Provolone is another good choice. But you can really use whatever strikes your fancy. Same goes for the cured meats. Cooked ham and salami are classic, but little cubes of prosciutto are nice. Manuela Zangara of Manu’s Menu tells us that in her family their filling included mortadella, provolone and fontal.
*There are also different schools of thought about how to add the meats and cheeses. They can be sliced or cubed, both mixed with the potato, both used as a separate middle layer or, as shown above, the meats mixed with the potato and the cheese layered in between.
The number of eggs in the mashed potato mixture also varies widely among recipes. I’ve seen recipes calling for a little as a single egg per 1 kg (2 lbs.) of potato. The more eggs you use, the more solid your gattò will be, of course. Jeanne Caròla Francesconi calls for adding four yolks and 3 whipped whites, which gives the mixture some ‘lift’. If you want to serve your gattò like a cake, sliced into wedges, you might want to err on the side of more eggs. If you prefer to spoon your gattò on to soft mounds on your plate, use fewer eggs.
Like la parmigiana di melanzane, I understand that Sicilians also make a potato cake like this, which isn’t that surprising given that both regions were under common rule of the Regno delle Due Sicilie for many years. How different the Sicilian version might be, I’m not sure. Perhaps some reader will let us know…
Gattò di patate (Potato “Cake”)
Ingredients
For the 'cake':
- 1 kg 2 lbs potatoes suitable for mashing
- 4 eggs
- 75 g 3 oz butter
- 75 g 3 oz freshly grated Parmesan or Romano cheese
- A few sprigs of parsley finely chopped
- Salt and pepper
- Milk if needed
For the filling*:
- 100-150 g 4 oz of mixed cured meats, such as cooked ham and salami, cut into very small cubes
- 100-150 g 4 oz of cheeses such as smoked scamorza and mozzarella, sliced or cut into small cubes
For molding and baking:
- Butter
- Breadcrumbs
Instructions
- Steam (or boil) the potatoes until they are fully tender, about 20-30 minutes depending on the size and quality of the potato. As soon as they are cool enough to handle, peel the potatoes and run them through a food mill or potato ricer into a large bowl, as if you were making mashed potatoes. Add the butter, grated cheese, seasonings and whole eggs. You can also add, as pictured, the cured meats to this mixture.
- Mix everything very well until the butter is melted and the other ingredients well incorporated. If the mixture is too stiff to work with, add a bit of milk, a few drops at a time, until you have the texture you want.
- Grease the bottom and sides of an 8" cake pan (or casserole) with the butter and line completely it with breadcrumbs.
- Spread out half the mashed potato mixture on the bottom of the pan, then arrange the cheese and (if you have not added them to the potato mixture) the cured meats on top.
- Add the other half of the mashed potato mixture on top of the filling and even it out so that the surface is nice and flat. Top the whole thing with more breadcrumbs and a few nobs of butter here and there.
- Bake in a moderate oven (180C/350F) for about 30-45 minutes, until the gattò is cooked through and golden brown. (If the top is not quite browned enough, raise the heat for a few minutes before removing from the oven.)
- Let the gattò cool off for a good 20 minutes or so before serving. Unmold the gattò if you baked it in a cake pan, and serve it just like a cake. If you baked it in a casserole, just bring it to the table and serve.
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63 Comments on “Gattò di patate (Neapolitan Potato “Cake”)”
When visiting my cousin, Peppe Barra, in Naples with my mother Maria, Peppe made this dish for us. So I had to try it myself and I have to say, your recipe is fantastico and brought me back to that wonderful meal. Thank you so much for sharing.
That’s wonderful, Anna. Thanks so much for letting me know. 🙂
Lest we forget, the Italians taught the French how to cook in many ways. This recipe may have been inspired in France and brought to Naples in the 19th century. However; the Neapolitans improved it and made it the winner we know today !
So true…
Pingback: Potato, Ham and Mozzarella Bake: Gattò di Patate (Vegetarian Version too) - Christina's Cucina
Making it a day ahead, gives it time to “set” properly. It can then be reheated as needed.
Looks great! Can this be made a day ahead?
If you make it a day ahead do you also have to bake it oe can it be assembled and covered in the fridge ?
I can’t say that I’ve done it, so I’m not speaking from experience. But I would think either way would work.
My husband is from Torre del Greco and I make a gatto, very similar . I don’t have a filling, I just fold everything through. I use a lot of black pepper as that is what his mother did. I am Australian so this was very different to how I ate growing up. My kids and grandkids all love it. I also do a vegetarian one as one is a vego.
Those versions sound lovely, Cheryl. Thanks for writing in! —Frank
I had to leave a comment, I don’t hear of many people that come from Torre Del Greco and I remember eating gatto at my grandmother’s house in Torre Del Greco. She lived on Corso Umberto. I found this website and read the comments. I’m making it today. They were all great memories.
Buon appetito, I made mine yesterday . Next Sunday I am visiting Torre del Greco. Have a happy Easter ??
So glad we could bring back those memories for you, Toni Ann!
Frank, this is gorgeous! I too have Gattò di Patate on my site, but I based it on the Cucchaio D’Argento recipe. This one is so much more stunning! I love how the flavors all complement each other, and it’s such an unexpectedly good dish! I must try this next time! Grazie!
Well, thanks so much for the kind words, Christina! I’ll have to check out your version of the gattò—I’m always looking for new versions, and it’s getting to be that time of year…
Going to try your dish real soon. The weather is turning here in the UK where I now live (used to be a New Yorker!). I grew up with lots of Italian families all around me and love Italian food. It is sometimes hard to get the ingredients I need but these days with shopping online, things have become a lot easier. I have been looking at a potato torta for a while now but loved how you explained that things vary from house to house and region to region. I will have a play with this – maybe leaving out the cured meats intially as trying to keep on track with a diet. I will use half fat cheeses but I think the 4 eggs are necessary. I have come across many recipes that don’t do this. I will do mine in an 8-inch cake pan as I think the deeper torta appeals to me. Will give it a whirl with a little twist or two – will add in fresh thyme as a lot of recipes call for that too. Thanks.
Enjoy, Martha! Let us know how things turn out.
Making this today! Will let you know how it comes out!!! Thanks.
Meant to write back and say how gorgeous this dish is. I have some of it in the freezer. My husband really liked it. We had it with a nice big salad and it was really delicious. A keeper recipe.
Hey Frank!
A had a practical question, and I’m hoping it’s not a rhetorical one:
Can I reheat this dish in a proper way? (My answer would be ‘no’, but I’m hoping you’ll tell me otherwise). This is a one-person household and my cats don’t take after ‘taters :), so I’m always on the lookout for dishes like this that can feed me throughout the week.
This dish is looking amazing, as always. Thanks for making me aware of it.
Rowald
Rowald,
Sorry for the *very* late response but to answer your question: sure, you could re-heat this quite successfully. The risk is that rice becoming a bit too soft, but that wouldn’t be the worst thing in the world. You’re not aiming for ‘al dente’ in this dish anyway.
Happy cooking!
Frank
Hi Frank. I’m already a big fan of gattò, as is my family! There is a great adaptation by chef Gena Iodice created at her restaurant on the edge of Naples which includes broccoli rabe fried in olive oil, garlic and red pepper flakes. I can’t get hold of rabe easily, so just use tenderstem broccoli, and for the sausage I use nduja sausage which adds lots of spice, and (purists beware!) for the cheese I use Bavarian smoked cheese, as I can’t get smoked mozzarella. The result is delicious and the colours are beautiful, deep earthy green and bright orange cushioned between cheesy, fluffy potatoes, I highly recommend it! Really glad to have found your site, have saved it in my favourites!
I liked reading your comments here as I live in the UK and cannot get many of the specialized ingredients on board but liked your idea of the smoked Bavarian cheese in there. I can get more stuff online these days from Italian sites so it is better these days. I liked the sound of this recipe and even have a Slimming World recipe for it using fromage frais and half fat mozzarella and leaving out the cured meats. I think with autumn approaching, it might be a nice thing to try.
I just found your website as I was looking for the potato gatto. A local Sicilian chef shared his recipe using Bolognese sauce in between the layers of mashed potato. He didn’t give me the exact recipe, so I had to go looking. Glad I found your website.
Thanks for much for stopping by, Sharon! That variation does sound awfully good. I’ll have to give it go the next time I make gattò!
I want to make this right now! My Irish husband would love this from his half-Sicilian wife!
Love the look of this
Frank, in the past few weeks your blog became my “go to” place for Italian recipes. Even more importantly, I continued to refined my fresh pasta cooking using your wonderful tips and instructions (which thanks to Google I landed here in the first place). Your interesting background stories add depth to a uniquely diverse Italian cuisine. An hour ago, barely 15 minutes after this wonderful “cake” came out of my oven, my wife and I had a couple of slices from this wonderful recipe.
So thank you for this treasure of recipes and knowledge, and for your passion and love of cooking. Please keep it up!
That’s awesome, Mr. Alter! For me there’s no greater satisfaction than to know that people are cooking from my recipes and enjoying the results. Thanks so very much for your readership. And rest assured I’ll keep doing what I’m doing for the foreseeable future!
Cheers,
Frank
I never made gatto di patate, but it sure looks amazing!
Thanks!
This is such an interesting recipe. I’d heard of timbalos, but never encountered something so similar, but made with potatoes. Is this exclusively a Neapolitan specialty or do they make it all over southern Italy? Thanks. Ken
I know it as a Neapolitan specialty, but coincidentally a fellow blogger just posted a recipe for a Puglian version, where it’s called pitta di patate:
http://foodloversodyssey.typepad.com/my_weblog/2013/10/potato-focaccia-from-cooking-vacation-puglia-italy.html
Also, as mentioned, it is made in Sicily as well. Now, I’ll have to ask someone from Calabria and Basilicata to complete the picture, but like many good recipes, I guess it has gotten around.
Tried this yesterday….brilliant, and will look at the variations again in the very near future.
Many thanks for sharing this….
Wonderful, Roman! So glad you liked it. :=)
Your photos make me almost taste the deliciousness!
Thanks so much, Alessandra!
Squisito!!!! But this is one of my FAVE foods. What more can I say – also I note that you use an 8″ pan. Bully for you! I love a good, high gattò While some cooks use larger pans, and their gatti (?) are indeed lovely and truly tempting, it’s the high ones, like yours that send me. In mine I use 2 # of potatoes and a 9″ pan. Next time I think I’ll use an 8″ pan. Thanks for the inspiration. Don’t you think our grandmothers would have loved to have had non-stick springform pans – surely one of the BEST inventions ever. Bravo, amico!
Adri, You have a fine eye for detail! Yes, it was the 8″ pan. I like a slightly higher gattò, too. Really makes an impression, no? The low kind is also lovely, of course—and you get more filling per slice to boot. You really can’t go wrong with all these yummy ingredients…
This recipe looks divine. I’ve never had it , but would love too.
Worth a try, Judee! Thanks for stopping by. :=)
Another fabulous addition to a stellar collection! This will warm hearts & tummies around my place this Autumn – a perfect comfort food. Thanks, again, Frank!
And thank *you* so much, Amos, for stopping by and leaving a comment!
Just good to see you back!
Thanks so much, it’s good to be back. :=)
Thank you for this recipe, Frank. I’ve been wanting to try a “gattò” for some time now and you’ve given me the perfect lead. Your explanations are always clear and thorough. I’m sorry for whatever has kept you away but have my fingers crossed that “back” means “in a good way” now.
Grazie mille, for this and many other recipes and reminiscings.
You’re so welcome, Laura! And thank *you* for your readership. It’s good to be back in the saddle, so to speak… :=)
Good to have you back; good to have you at my fingertips! 🙂
This is one for the winter and will definitely be on our menu.
That’s fantastic, Diane! Let us know how you like it.
It’s like a giant Italian hashbrown! (Well, kind of) How about a giant Italian latke? (Still not really…) Either way, it looks like a fun and tasty recipe. My husband would go nuts for it.
Well worth a try, Rachel! I kinda like the hashbrown analogy! Or the latke, too. Love them both.
Looks very very nice and tasty. Will definitely have a go at it!
It’s always nice to come up with new recipes for the family!
Do let us know how it turns out for you, Anna!
Frank – This is such a delicious recipe. My friend from Salerno first introduced me to it and I get weak thinking about eating it!
It’s a real treat, isn’t it?
Ricordo ancora l’enorme teglia di gatto’ che la zia Elvira ci preparava quando insieme alla mia famiglia andavamo a Salerno, sotto la crosticina croccante si nascondeva una meraviglia fatta di patate , mozzarella e salumi, non sono mai riuscita ad eguagliarla !Le tue foto mi hanno messo voglia di riprovare a farla, grazie Frank ! Buona settimana…
Grazie, Chiara! Sai anch’io ho molti parenti a Salerno solo che non ci sono mai andato. Che peccato…
This looks like an amazing cool-weather comfort dish. Thank you so much for sharing the recipe and techniques!
You’re welcome, Candace! And thank *you* for your readership.
This is a dish I have never had before but know I would love.
I’m sure you would, Karen! Well worth a try…