Not using my cookbooks as often as I should a while ago I set myself a little challenge of just randomly picking out a book of my collection browsing the recipes and trying out a new one. Patricia Wells "The Provence Cookbook" was published in 2004 and I like it because Wells, the doyenne of Provence cooking schools, included pictures of stallholders from Vaison's famous Tuesday market, tells you where to find the best cheeseshop and fishmonger, to pair which wine to which dish and generally is one of the very best ambassadors of Provençal cooking and lifestyle.
I had before tried out her recipe for a Tomato Clafoutis (truly divine), so this time and since I had a few zucchini left and was looking for a quick side dish I tried the "Chunky Zucchini Gratin".
The Book
The recipe couldn't be simpler: you cut 3 or 4 zucchini into chunks (the skinnier the zucchini the better they taste), peel and finely slice 3 garlic cloves ** and heat some good olive oil in which you fry the zucchini and garlic until the zucchini are lightly browned. Cover the frying pan, lower the heat and let cook until the zucchini are soft. Transfer into a gratin dish, drizzle with about 1/4 cup of cream and a generous handful of freshly grated Gruyère cheese. Place the dish under your preheated broiler and broil until the cheese has melted. Yum!
** Patricia Wells recipe tells you to just halve the garliccloves and leave them out of the finished dish. I finley sliced the garlic and left it in.
The Dish
I must do that. My cookbooks don't get nearly the use that they should!
ReplyDeletei was sitting here looking at zucchini and wondering what to do next with them...now i know! thanks for the recipe!
ReplyDeleteWOW, a yummer :D
ReplyDeleteXoXo
http://abudhabifood.blogspot.com
Oh yes, we all should use our cookbooks more.
ReplyDeleteNow, about that tomato clafouti...
great photo, makes one want to make the dish right away + slicing the G. is a good idea.
ReplyDeleteWhat a lovely book and delicious sounding recipe, you can't go wrong with those ingredients!
ReplyDeleteMMMM...garlic and cheese - how could you go wrong? ;-)
ReplyDeleteSounds like a very good recipe. I have made several dishes from that cookbook and I like it a lot. A family favorite is the Riz de Camargue with lemon and pine nuts. It was wonderful to catch up with you and Robert at the market in Vaison-la-Romaine. Got home to CA last night, already dreaming about our return to Sablet in September.
ReplyDeleteIndeed yummy Barbara, I love simple recipes like this and what a delicious result - when you have good ingredients, they speak for themselves, aren't they? Have some zucchini in the fridge, the recipe is set!:) ozlem x
ReplyDeleteWhat a simple and delicious recipe. It's a great way to get more veggies in. :) Thank you so much for sharing.
ReplyDeleteI need to make this!
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