For anyone who says they hate zucchini, I’d be willing to bet they’ve never had one so fresh that the verdant gourds tingle the tips of their fingers with a glistening coat of spines. Fresh zucchinis are real summer treat and one of the joys of cultivating a garden during the warmer months.
A little olive oil, salt and pepper are all you need to make these prolific summer wonders sweet, juicy, and bursting with the essence of a sun drenched summer garden. When it comes to squash, “prolific” is the key word, so by now that initial elation about the garden bounty has probably turned to boredom, and those luscious baby zucchinis are starting to look more like bloated baseball bats, basking in the later summer sun.
Here’s a simple recipe that might inject a little of that initial enthusiasm back into this humble gourd. Best of all, it works well with zucchinis that have grown a little past their prime.
The key to this recipe is to salt and squeeze the zucchini to get rid of the excess water before baking the gratin. If you don’t, you’ll end up with a soggy mess with bits of watery cheese in between. Along the same lines, I salt my zucchini almost universally. Whether you’re slicing and sautéing, or shredding and putting on pizza, removing the extra water keeps the zucchini from getting soggy and speeds up caramelization.
The other thing that sets my gratin apart from most is that I use a trick I learned while developing my mac and cheese recipe. Instead of making a béchamel, I just toss the shredded cheese in potato starch before adding the cream. This creates a rich cheesy sauce that’s faster and more foolproof than doing it the long way.
Units
Ingredients
- 600 grams zucchini (1/8-inch thick slices)
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 100 grams Gruyère cheese (shredded)
- 2 teaspoons potato starch
- ⅛ teaspoon ground nutmeg
- ½ cup heavy cream
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F (175 C).
- Put the zucchini in a colander and sprinkle with the salt. Toss to coat evenly with salt and leave the zucchini in the colander set over a bowl for one hour. The salt not only seasons the zucchini it draws out extra water, preventing your gratin from getting soggy.
- Add the Gruyère, potato starch and ground nutmeg to a bowl and toss to combine evenly.
- Use your hands to squeeze out the excess water from the zucchini, then arrange 1/3 of them in a single layer in an oven safe dish with high sides.
- Cover with 1/3 of the cheese.
- Do two more alternating layers of zucchini and cheese, then pour the cream evenly over everything.
- Place the gratin in the oven and bake until the zucchini is soft and the cheese on top has browned.
Agnesma says
Pls advise what the oven temperature is? tks
Marilia says
This looks so good 🙂
Kelly Siew says
I love Zucchini, this looks really delicious! Need to replenish my cheese counter before making this dish, thanks for sharing!
Rty says
Roughly how long does it take to bake in the oven?
Marc Matsumoto says
It depends on a lot of factors, but anywhere from 45 minutes to 1 hour.
Marilia says
Loved this simple delicious recipe.
kathleenditommaso says
Grams to ounces: love the internet for a quick translation. That said, I used my judgement or lack thereof. 🙂
Excellent results – and in my toaster/convection oven no less since my big oven is on hiatus. However, I found it necessary to use my spatula after the dish was served…to fight for leftovers. 😀
Peugot206cc says
What would be my main dish for this?
Marc Matsumoto says
Hi Peugot, this would go well with any chicken, fish or beef dish. It depends on what you feel like eating it with:-)
Nagi | RecipeTin Eats says
That’s a really interesting technique, to toss the cheese in potato starch. Do you think it works for saucier dishes? Perhaps your Mac and Cheese recipe will answer that question – off to check it out!
Nadine says
A perfect classic.
Marc Matsumoto says
😁