May 2004 Recipe

Spring Gratin of Baby Vegetables with Cheese and Mustard Sauce

This spring gratin is multi-purpose for all sorts of vegetables. Here I’m suggesting baby vegetables, but a wide variety of roots and greens do equally well, including celeriac and chopped leaf spinach. Try to in clued contrasts of color and texture – carrots are always cheerful, for instance; celery complements other flavors; and it is a poor gratin that has no onion at all.

Serves 6 as an appetizer, 4 as a light main course

• 8-10 baby carrots, or 4-5 medium carrots, halved if large (1 lb)

• 4-5 baby turnips, halved or quartered depending on size (1 lb)

• 8-10 small white onions

• 3-4 small fennel bulbs, cut in 8 wedges (1 lb)

• 4-6 baby zucchini, thickly sliced (1 lb)

For the cheese and mustard sauce

• ¼ cup butter, more for the baking dish

• ¼ cup flour

• 2 cups milk, more if needed

• Salt and pepper

• 1 ¼ cups grated Gruyère or Cheddar cheese

• 1 ½ tablespoons smooth mild or hot Dijon mustard, more to taste
   

• 1 ½ quart gratin dish, or 4-6 individual dishes

1. Put the carrots in a pan of cold, salted water, cover, bring to a boil and simmer until just tender, 8-10 minutes. Cook the turnips in the same way, allowing 10-15 minutes until just tender. Drain both vegetables and set aside.

2. Bring a pan of salted water to a boil, add the onions and simmer them, uncovered, until just tender, 6-10 minutes. Lift them out with a draining spoon, rinse with cold water and leave to drain thoroughly. Use the same cooking water to cook the fennel and zucchini separately in the same way, allowing 5-8 minutes for fennel and 2-3 minute for zucchini.

3. Butter the gratin dish, or individual dishes. Mix all vegetables and spread then in the dish(es).

4. For the sauce: Melt the butter in a saucepan, whish in the flour and cook for a minute or two until foaming. Pour in the milk and bring to a boil, whisking constantly until the sauce thickens. Season and simmer for 2 minutes. Take the sauce from the heat and stir in half the cheese until it melts (do not cook the sauce further or it will cook into strings). Stir in the mustard, taste and adjust the seasoning. It’s important not to overheat the mustard as that turns it bitter. The sauce can be spicy, or mild, as you prefer; it should generously coat the back of the spoon but not too thickly so, if necessary, add more milk.

5. Spoon the sauce over the vegetables – they should be completely coated, but still show through a veil of sauce. Sprinkle the remaining cheese on top.

6. To finish: Heat the broiler and set a shelf 10 in from the heat. Put the gratin on the shelf and broil until browned and bubbling about the edges, 8-10 minutes for a large gratin or 6-8 for small ones.

Shortcut: Reduce the number of vegetables to two of contrasting color and taste

Getting Ahead: A cinch. Prepare the gratin completely ahead and refrigerate it up to 24 hours, loosely covered in plastic wrap. Reheat it in the over at 350°F for 20 minutes for small dishes or 25-30 minutes for a large dish, then broil it as directed.

On the Side: Spring Gratin would be excellent with Colombian Rice with Vegetables and Coconut Milk or plain boiled rice.

In the Glass: A pleasing white wine that is not too dry, such as an Alsatian-style Riesling or a light Chardonnay.

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