eclaire (what’s in a) name?

have you all noticed that summer is here!?! ok, well it hasn’t been all that warm here in northern california, but vegetables seem to be pretty aware of the seasonal shift, and i’m completely taking advantage of the delicious burgeoning produce in my kitchen.

before i delve into this post, however, i want to share with you that i’ve recently started importing these blog posts into my facebook account. it’s been great to be able to share posts and recipes with both new and old friends on facebook!

so hello, facebook readers, do you know that i have a whole website at www.eclaire.name? on my website, you can find all sorts of old recipes under the recipe index, plus search for recipes based on category or ingredient.

and friends who read my website, do you have a facebook account? are we friends?

ok, now that the blog housekeeping is complete, let’s get back to this veggie gratin. i have been reading all about spring and summer gratins on my favorite food blogs lately, and i realized that i always considered a gratin to be a middle of the winter dish, one that would heat the whole house with the length of time it simmered away in the oven and ease the cold with its heavy and delicious flavors.

but after reading the blogs i noted above, i realized i had to change my previous misconceptions about the essence of a gratin. not sure which one to start with, i saved the recipes but waited for the right moment to arise. unfortunately, these recipes got pushed to the back of my “must make” list, and there they sat, neglected until this weekend.

what happened this weekend? first, we were gifted lovely home grown zucchini and yellow squash from mike’s parents. then, we were gifted a beautiful basil plant from noah. and finally, as i thumbed through the latest issue of vegetarian times, i stumbled across yet another gratin recipe that called for both zucchini and basil. so i decided this was the moment to make a summer gratin, once and for all.

this recipe is easy to make, but requires a lot of resting time while the tomatoes and zucchini, both sliced and salted, sweat out water. i honestly wasn’t convinced that much water would eek out of the veggies, so i measured the amount sweated out afterward, and it totaled to less than a quarter cup…is that really enough to wait 45 minutes? i think i may omit the sweating step next time – what can i say, i like veggies juices and recipes to fit into my weeknight schedule. all said and done, the dish creates four light summer-dinner sized servings, and tastes amazingly delicious, full of my favorite summer flavors – basil, zucchini, tomato, and, well they’re not summer-specific, but cheese and garlic. yum!

veggie gratin

adapted from vegetarian times, july/august 2009
yields 4 servings

• 3 large tomatoes (approx 1½lbs)
• 3 medium zucchini and/or yellow squash (also approx 1½lbs)
• salt
• 2T olive oil, divided
• 4 cloves of garlic, minced
• 3/4c grated parmesan
• 1/4c basil, torn
• 10 kalamata olives, coarsely chopped (approx 2T)
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1. preheat oven to 350°
2. thinly slice the tomatoes, sprinkle with salt, and then place in a colander, allowing 45 minutes to drain
3. thinly slice the zucchini, sprinkle with salt, and place on a cookie sheet, allowing 30 minutes to drain
4. rinse the zucchini and pat dry
5. heat 1T olive oil in a pan and saute the zucchini until golden, 3-4 minutes
6. layer half of the zucchini in an 8×8 dish
7. place half of the tomatoes on top of the zucchini, and sprinkle with half of the garlic, parmesan, basil and olives
8. layer the second half of zucchini over the first layer, then add the rest of the tomatoes, garlic, basil, and olives
9. drizzle 1T olive oil over the entire dish and sprinkle with the remaining parmesan (and a little more if you desire)
10. cover with aluminum foil and bake 10 minutes
11. remove the foil and bake 20 minutes longer, until cheese is bubbly
12. serves with good bread and/or a green salad