Let me give you a shortcut recipe for potatoes au gratin without all the tedious slicing. I think the effort of slicing puts a lot of people off this fantastic dish. As for me, a few years ago I sliced the tip of my finger off on a mandoline.

Ingredients
Potatoes
Milk, half-and-half, or cream
Grated Cheddar cheese
Bacon bits
Chopped green onion
Salt
Pepper
Nutmeg

Obviously quantities depend on how many you're feeding. I only ever cook for one person, or possibly two on the days I'm trying to get some pussy.

Peel and quarter the potatoes. Boil them until they're fork-tender. Drain and dry the potatoes; let them sit and dry out (this is important). Now put 'em in the baking dish and kind of mung 'em up with a fork, not quite mashing them but roughly squashing and chopping to create lots of surface area. Season with salt, pepper, and a dash of nutmeg, and mix well. Mix in bacon bits, green onions, and half the cheese. Pour in milk, half-and-half, or cream to cover. (It's going to look like soup but don't worry.) Now cover with the remaining Cheddar, and perhaps dash some Parmesan on top if you have it.

Now bake for 30-45 minutes at 400° F, until the cheese has browned and crusted the way you want. That liquid will get soaked up completely by the potatoes (this is why you have to let the potatoes get dry), and leave you with a a delicious, albeit high-calorie side dish.

A 500ml baking dish will turn out two portions, a 1000ml dish four portions. If you're dining alone, don't worry, this refrigerates well and reheats fantastically.

I think even Panzer could do this.