Bake This Dish: Fennel And Beet Gratin
When confronted with multiple pounds of beets from my CSA, I tried to think of something to do that wasn't a beet salad or a roasted-beet sandwich. I made some pickled beets, but I only needed so many of those. What to do with the rest? The answer lay in the other things I had on hand, which included a big chunk of Parmesan cheese and a couple of fennel bulbs (also from my CSA). I use fennel and Parmesan when I make potato gratin, so I thought, why not do a gratin with another root vegetable?
You'll want to use a mandoline to slice the fennel bulbs and beets nice and thin (and with even thickness), but be really careful because the roasted beets can be pretty slippery. I suggest serving this with some simple steak or roast chicken, something hearty to go with the earthiness of the beets, but nothing too crazy, as the gratin is pretty rich.
- 1 1/2 pounds beets
- 1 cup fennel greens
- 1 cup sliced fennel bulb (2-4 mm thick)
- 1 cup grated Parmesan cheese
- 1 green garlic (garlic scape)
- 2 tablespoons fresh thyme
- 1/3 cup fresh chives
- butter for greasing the baking dish
- 3 eggs
- 3/4 cup whole milk
- 2 teaspoons salt
- 1 teaspoon black pepper
- Preheat oven at to 375° F.
- Clean beets, and wrap each one in foil.
- Roast for 60 minutes.
- Unwrap foil, and let beets cool until cool enough to handle (30-60 minutes depending on size of beets and your heat tolerance).
- Combine all your "herb mixture" ingredients and mix together.
- Combine all the the "milk mixture" ingredients and whisk until the milk and eggs are well incorporated.
- Slice beets thinly (2-4 mm), preferably on a mandoline.
- Butter a 2-quart baking dish. Layer the gratin in this order from bottom up: Beets Sliced fennel Herb mix Milk mix Cheese Fennel greens Repeat two more times (3 layers total)
- Bake for 30 minutes, remove foil, and bake for 10-15 minutes more. Let stand briefly before serving.