Domenica Marchetti has written a wonderful book celebrating Italian food with family and friends. Many of the recipes in “Big Night In” (Chronicle Books) require just a few steps to create great-tasting dishes.
With summer slowly coming to an end, it’s time to cook up those gorgeous peppers, tomatoes and squash one more time. What better way to do it than in this gratin filled with all of September’s best produce?
All of the vegetables are mixed together with some Mediterranean seasonings and roasted until tender. Scooped into a baking casserole, the vegetables are topped with a crispy Parmesan sourdough crust. This recipe can be easily doubled to feed a crowd.
Look for meaty sweet peppers and medium-size zucchini and summer squash for best flavor. A fruity extra virgin olive oil is essential for this dish. Serve this alongside grilled fish, chicken or meat.
A big zinfandel wine would stand up to the pronounced Provencal flavors.
September gratin
Makes 6 servings.
VEGETABLES:
3 sweet red peppers, or 2 red and 1 yellow, trimmed and seeded, sliced lengthwise into thin ribs
1 yellow summer squash, ends trimmed, halved lengthwise and cut crosswise into thin half-coins
1 zucchini squash, ends trimmed, halved lengthwise and cut crosswise into thin half-coins
1 large yellow onion, peeled, halved and sliced into thin half-rings
1/4 cup fresh tomato sauce or 1/4 cup chopped sun-dried tomatoes marinated in oil
1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
1 tablespoon chopped fresh basil
1 teaspoon chopped fresh thyme
Kosher or sea salt to taste
Freshly ground black pepper to taste
1/2 teaspoon sweet Hungarian paprika, or to taste
BREAD CRUMB COATING:
2 cups fresh bread crumbs made with sourdough bread
3 tablespoons freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese
3 or 4 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
Kosher or sea salt
Butter for the baking dish
Heat the oven to 400 degrees.
In a large bowl, toss the vegetables and tomato sauce or sun-dried tomatoes with the olive oil, basil, thyme, salt, pepper and paprika until thoroughly combined. Turn the mixture into a large baking dish or roasting pan and roast in the oven for 45 minutes to 1 hour, stirring every 15 minutes or so, until the vegetables are tender and lightly browned in spots.
While the vegetables are cooking, prepare the bread crumb topping: Mix the bread with the Parmigiano, olive oil and salt to taste. Set aside.
Butter an ovenproof ceramic or Pyrex baking dish. Turn the vegetables into the baking dish. Top with the bread crumb mixture. Return the vegetables to the oven for 20 minutes or so, until the top is golden brown. Remove from the oven and allow the gratin to sit for a few minutes before serving.
Do Ahead: The vegetables may be roasted up to a day in advance and refrigerated in a tightly lidded container. Bring to room temperature before assembling the gratin. The topping may be made several hours in advance and kept, covered, at room temperature.
TRIBUNE MEDIA SERVICES
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