Summer Squash Gratin

This morning a friend emailed. So, she said, you haven’t updated the blog for a while.

Um, yeah. I know. Believe me when I say it wasn’t for lack of effort.

Anyway, here we are. And here is a post.

—

Okay, so summer squash, which for today’s purposes encompasses zucchini. As I write, home gardeners–i.e., not me–are awash in summer squash. Read Barbara Kingsolver’s Animal, Vegetable, Miracle–specifically, the chapter entitled “Zucchini Larceny”–and you begin to understand the faint edge of panic creeping into gardening households, where summer squash are multiplying like so many vegetal rabbits.

When neighbors leave bags of zucchini hanging from Kingsolver’s mailbox, anonymous, completely unnecessary gifts, she is amazed by their ingenuity. Kingsolver then recalls Garrison Keillor’s joke about rural communities during harvest season: now is the only time they lock their car doors, hoping to protect themselves against further unwanted gifts of surplus squash.

—

Today’s summer squash gratin was inspired by a recipe from Martha Stewart Living Magazine.  I’ve altered both the preparation and the ingredients, as a full cup of heavy cream in August seemed a bit much.

You can prepare this summer squash gratin two ways The first is quick and dirty (metaphorically speaking). Wash the vegetables, slice them any old way, toss all the ingredients into a buttered gratin dish, and bake. The resulting gratin will be all right, especially if you add enough cheese, but…that’s all it will be.

The second preparation method requires more time and more effort but gives a better result. Summer squash gratin is not a difficult dish to prepare, but like any recipe-except maybe microwaved stuff–a little extra effort goes a long way.

Both Marcella Hazan and Gabrielle Hamilton say summer squash is an especially gritty, dirty vegetable. It therefore must be soaked in cold water for at least 20 minutes to expel said dirt. Who knew?

Summer squash is a watery vegetable to begin with. Now we’ve just added more. Which we must expunge.

To this end, the squash must be grated or finely cut. You can do this one of three ways: use a food processor, a box grater, or a sharp knife.

However you go about it, toss your grated or sliced squash into a colander. I opted for door number three because 1. I loathe box graters, and 2. it entails the least washing up. Toss the sliced squash into a colander with a teaspoon of salt.

While the squash drains, butter your gratin pan. Chop your onion and garlic. Now melt some butter in a saute pan. Brown the the onion and garlic.

Tip the onion/garlic mixture into the gratin dish and smooth it with the spatula to evenly cover the bottom of the dish.

Remember I am married to a person who hates onions. By all means use more onion than I have.

Now take a clean, non-linting dishtowel, and wrap the squash in it. Squeeze as much liquid as possible from the squash. Be sure your chosen dishtowel is free of holes. Otherwise bits of squash will go everywhere, making a sticky mess. Ask me how I know. (not pictured.)

Tip the squash into the oniony saute pan and brown. You may need to brown the squash in relays. Like spinach, it will cook down amazingly. Once the squash is browned, spread it atop the onions and garlic.

Incidentally, there is an Italian term for what we’re doing. It’s called insaporire. Literally translated, it means “bestowing taste.” According to Marcella Hazan, whose indispensable Essentials Of Classic Italian Cooking I consulted in developing this post, insaporire is the difference between a good dish and a dull one. It means taking the time to carefully brown or saute foods–especially vegetables–to create a flavor base that ultimately contributes to the finished dish.

Back to the stove.

Add the seasonings. I used a mixture of fresh and dried seasonings in my summer squash gratin. Below, Aleppo pepper and oregano.

At this juncture, you can drizzle the gratin with olive oil and bake it. Or you can add the final three gratin ingredients.

Beautiful smoked paprika.

Add the cheddar cheese. You might notice the cheese is pared rather than grated. Using a vegetable parer is far easier for me than grating. If you are a carpal-tunnel sufferer, give it a try.

Scatter panko over the gratin. Or go all out and use real bread crumbs.

Finally, tip in the dairy of choice. I used half-and-half, pouring from a measuring cup until the level reached about three-quarters of the way up the dish. This was about 3/4 of a cup, or 170 ml.

Bake for about 40 minutes, or until the gratin is browned and bubbling.

Serve summer squash gratin as a main dish with a green salad, or as side with chicken, pork, or other vegetable dishes. At this time of year, a tomato salad is also delicious with squash gratin.

A final note: any leftover gratin makes a wonderful sandwich between two pieces of good white bread, slathered with Kewpie mayo. Thinly sliced tomato and a little sweet onion make delicious additions.