recipe | root vegetable, apple & rosemary gratin

ingredients (just think, soon this will be DINNER!)

all good things start with heavy cream

yeah, we were well-stocked on wine (aren't we always?)

birthday wine from jared - finally cracked into it 

no apologies 

celery root is the ugliest vegetable of them all 

i can feel myself slipping into a rosemary whirlwind 

what is with that one wonky potato? creeps me out 

a general rule of thumb: always add more garlic

also a good rule of thumb: always add more cheese 

voila! 

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Dakota was spot on when he said:

"It probably takes Lairen twice as long to cook anything because she has to keep stopping to take pictures."

Well, yes.

If you'd like to eat sooner, please feel free to pick up the camera yourself.

In any case, it's funny because it's true.

This was the meal I made for Shamoo's mom & her friend Allison their last night in town and I was really tickled with how it all turned out! 

 

The chicken breasts and green beans were pretty standard - I'd say just cook those to your liking (I baked the chicken with a little garlic salt, rosemary & black pepper, and the green beans were just cooked and tossed with a little butter, salt & pepper). But the fun part was the dairy-laden, rosemary-infused, potato-apple-fennel-celery root situation...

Root Vegetable, Apple & Rosemary Gratin

adapted from Sur la Table

serves 4-6

(this is the base recipe, I doubled everything)

2 tbsp. unsalted butter

1 large celery root, peeled and thinly sliced

2 baking/russet potatoes, peeled and thinly sliced

2 apples, peeled and thinly sliced

2 fennel bulbs, thinly sliced

1/2 cup all-purpose flour

1/2 tsp. salt (I used garlic salt)

1/2 tsp. black pepper

1 quart cream

2 tbsp. fresh rosemary, finely minced (I used more)

1 head of garlic, minced

12 oz. emmenthal cheese (swiss or parmesan would be great too!), shredded

(all measurements are approximate - there is nothing raw in this so you can taste along the way to season to taste)

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Preheat oven to 350

In pan of choice (I always use my big lasagna pan or two little square dishes), butter generously. Layer the potato, celery root, fennel and apples evenly. 

In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, salt, pepper, rosemary, garlic and cream until well blended. Pour evenly over the goodies in the pan.

Top with shredded cheese and cover with aluminum foil.

Bake for 30 minutes, remove foil and bake for another 30 minutes until browned on top. Use a wooden dowel if you have on (I used a cheap wooden chopstick) to press into center and check for doneness. 

Slice and serve!