Summer Vegetable Gratin
I don’t know about you, but I am loving the vegetables available right now. The only problem is I sometimes bring home a bit more than I know quite what to do with. A couple weeks ago I bought a couple heads of that crazy, brilliantly colored cauliflower, one green and one yellowish orange. They languished in our fridge for about a week before I decided I’d better do something about them, so I made this gratin with the cauliflower and some zucchini and squash that I picked up the next week.
It turned out delicious but just a tad soggy. I’m used to making a gratin with potatoes, which tend to soak up the milk, but these vegetables didn’t need nearly so much liquid. That did make it a little better reheated though since it didn’t dry out. Definitely made an easy and delicious side with very minimal prep time. I’m sure I’ll be coming back to this one!
Summer Vegetable Gratin
about 2 lbs vegetables (such as zucchini, squash, cauliflower, onions, potatoes…)
2 T chopped sage (optional)
1 c cheddar cheese, grated
2 T butter
1/2-1 c milk
1/4 c parmesan cheese
Preheat oven to 400 F.
Thinly slice any vegetables that are slice-able (I used a couple zucchini, a couple squash, and an onion). Cut any other vegetables into small chunks (I used two small heads of cauliflower).
Butter the bottom of a large casserole dish (I think mine is 9″ x 13″). Spread about a third of the vegetables in a layer on the bottom of the dish. Sprinkle with half the sage and some salt and pepper. Spread with a little less than half the cheddar cheese. Continue with 2 more layers of vegetables with seasoning, with a layer of cheese in between.
Pour milk over the vegetables until it just covers the bottom of the pan (sorry I didn’t really measure this). I used milk to about a third of the way up the side, and that was too much, so that’s why I say only barely cover the bottom.
Top with remaining cheddar cheese and parmesan cheese. Dot with butter. Bake at 400 F until golden brown, about 30 minutes. Reheats pretty well in the toaster oven.
Tags: cauliflower, gratin, Side Dish, squash, Vegetable, vegetarian, zucchini
June 24th, 2009 at 12:30 pm
This looks pretty. I have a lot of produce to use from our CSA box–including lots of summer squash, maybe I’ll do a gratin tonight. Looks like you got romanesque cauliflower–that stuff is beautiful.
June 29th, 2009 at 10:01 pm
I was inspired by this post, and made my own version of it yesterday! You’re right, gotta be careful with the milk, but the leftovers are nice and moist today.
Thanks!
June 30th, 2009 at 1:51 pm
Glad you enjoyed it Saket. Yeah, I think adding potatoes may be the way to go — I think they absorb the liquid better instead of just putting out their own.