a winter vegetable-salsify

A friend of mine sent me a link to Zester daily, which has some interesting cooking ideas. I added the link to the blog: look it up! One of the winter vegetables mentioned is the salsify, which, honestly, I discovered in France. My impression (correct me if I'm wrong!) is that this is not a well known vegetable in the US. Since I happen to have a recipe, thought I'd share it!
TIPS: Like all roots, choose the firm ones. Peel like a carrot. To make a decent gratin for 4, buy at least 1 kilo or 2 lbs of the vegetable.

Gratin de salsify

2lbs or 1 kilo salsify

Bechamel (see post)

butter

milk

flour or corn starch

nutmeg

Parmesan or other grated cheese.

salt & pepper

Preheat oven to medium.

Clean and peel the salsify. 

Slice into rounds.

Parboil until cooked but firm.

Meanwhile make a thick bechamel, with nutmeg.

Butter a baking dish.

Put the cooked salsify into the dish, cover with bechamel, sprinkle cheese, salt & pepper to taste.

Bake in oven until golden, about 30 mins.

Endives: savory bread & other ideas

Endive inspires love or hate, but not indifference. In our family we're evenly split on the issue. Most will eat it in salads, but there is an even split on cooked endives. Here are a few recipes that seem to please nearly everyone.

Salads:

A mix of thinly sliced endive & watercress makes a lovely salad since the sweetness of the watercress is balanced by the bitterness of the endive. Grate a small garlic clove (or a thinly chopped shallot) in the bottom of the bowl, add the salad, serve with olive oil & white balsamic vinegar.

Chopped endive with walnuts & blue cheese, served with classic French vinaigrette (see recipe).

Or just add thinly sliced endive to mixed salads!

Grilled:

Endive can be grilled on the stove top or in the oven, with olive oil dribbled on top. Usually I wrap it in bacon or ham. Occasionally I add a slice of cheese and a dash of white wine. For a crispy effect, try a mixture of breadcrumbs, parmesan & parsely.

Bread:

This is a way of getting endive past the palates of those that usually won't eat it. Makes a lovely accompaniement to aperitif or soup.

2 small endives or 1 large

180g flour

10g baking powder

3 eggs

100ml oil

100ml milk

30g sugar

50g parmesan

green olives

walnuts

paprika

nutmeg

Preheat oven to medium, line bread pan with wax paper or use a silicon mould.

Beat eggs, then blend in milk, oil, sugar, salt & pepper, paprika & nutmeg.

Add flour & baking powder.

Mix in thinly sliced endive, chopped olives & walnuts.

Pour mixture into pan, bake for about an hour.

Lasagna-Different recipes

Originally lasagna is a Northern Italian dish, a favorite that has travelled with Italian immigrants and adapted to many different tastes. Rather than give seperate recipes for lasagna, it seemed easier to put them all together under one heading that will probably be frequently updated.
The recipes are given with store bought dried lasagna which doesn't need to be pre-cooked.

TIPs: Make the lasagna ahead of time, up to the night before. Therefore the pasta has time to absorb the liquids & will cook quicker & taste better.
Always cover with tin foil until the lasagna is nearly cooked (i.e. if the cooking time is 20 minutes, keep covered 15 minutes) to avoid it getting too dry.
If the lasagna is too liquid, then either remove the foil earlier or prolong cooking time (it's nearly impossible to overcook lasagna!).

Most pasta is sold in 1lb packages: usually half a package is enough, but adapt the number of sheets to the oven dish.

Select a deep square or rectangular oven dish.

Can be frozen once cooked.

Classic lasagna
Follow instructions for meat sauce or ragù.
Follow instructions for white sauce or bechamel recipe.

1/2 package of lasagna (preferably egg pasta)
4 oz grated parmesan cheese
1 mozzarella (optional)

Preheat oven to a medium temperature (check cooking instructions on lasagna package).
Pour a ladle of meat sauce in the bottom of the dish.
Line the dish with the sheets of pasta, avoid overlapping.
Sprinkle on cheeses.
Pour half a ladle of bechamel.
Repeat until dish is filled.
Cover with foil.
See cooking instructions which vary from 20-40 minutes.
Serve with a sprinkle of parmesan.



VEGETARIAN LASAGNA
For 10 years I was a strict vegetarian (no meat/fish products). The following are recipes for vegetable lasagna.
TIP: with the exception of Pesto Lasagna, to make the recipe lighter I substitute bechamel with 8 oz liquid heavy cream.

Pesto lasagna
In summer, when I find aromatic fresh basil, I make my own pesto. However this never lasts into winter, when store bought is on the menu! Pesto lasagna was quite the rage in Italy a few years ago & is still popular. A great "last minute" recipe as it's simple & quick!

Follow instructions for white sauce or bechamel recipe.

1/2 package of lasagna (preferably egg pasta)
1 jar of pesto or about 8 oz fresh pesto
4 oz grated parmesan cheese
1 mozzarella (optional)

Prepare bechamel.
Add pesto.
Follow instructions for classic lasagna, alternating layers of lasagna sheets & filling.
Cook like classic lasagna.

Zucchini lasagna
Follow instructions for white sauce or bechamel recipe or use liquid heavy cream.

1/2 package of lasagna (preferably egg pasta)
3 medium zucchini
1 medium onion
18 oz tomato sauce
4 oz grated parmesan cheese
1 mozzarella (optional)

Slice zucchini & onion thinly.
Sauté in oilve oil until golden.
Prepare bechamel.
Follow instructions for classic lasagna, alternating layers of lasagna sheets, tomato, zucchini filling, cheeses & cream.
Cook like classic lasagna.