come along with me while i develop a recipe! | ZUCCHINI AU GRATIN is quick, creamy & full of promise

i'm testing a new zuke recipe today modeled after a version of potatos au gratin that i made as a kid. i'm working toward the fastest, easiest, one pot zuke dish i can make, that still has a ton of flavor and great texture.

by the way - did you know squash is actually a fruit? so the tromboncino squash is a fruit, not a veg (though commonly called a veggie including mistakenly by me in this video!).

i start by salting the squash, which i don't think is entirely necessary and won’t do in the final recipe, but a good trick if you want to get your veg to release water. it's then a pretty simple layering job, topped with breadcrumbs and cheese. pay attention to the cook time - you don't want your zukes to be mushy or your cheese too brown, and keeping an eye on it in the later stage of cooking is the way to accomplish both.

NOTE!!! the recipe below isn't perfect - yet! - but if you like to experiment and want to give it a try, i'd love to hear how you'd change it to make it better! this is the next iteration I made after the video you’re watching, so it incorporates the changes you saw me talking about in the vid :)

work-in-progress zucchini au gratin

4 large squash (i used zucchini & tromboncino) - approx 4 -5lbs, sliced into 1/4 inch rounds (use a mandoline for uniform slices!)
1 large sweet onion, sliced into rings
1/2C flour, divided (this is 3T per cup of milk plus an extra 2T to counteract zucchini water - you may need more or less!)
2C milk (i used a combo of cream & water. i'd use no more than 1C of cream; more and the richness of the cream would overpower the squash. nondairy milk would work here as well)
2C grated cheese, recommend a combo of gruyere and parm (don't use a microplane like I did - the cheese is prone to burning. good old box grater is the right move here!)
4T butter
1C panko breadcrumbs
1tsp fresh nutmeg, grated
1T fresh thyme
S&P

1) Preheat oven to 400.
2) In a 9x13 inch baking dish, arrange a single layer of zucchini (approx 1/4 of your zucchini).
3) Top with 1/4 of your onion.
4) Sprinkle over 2T flour.
5) Sprinkle on .5C cheese.
6) Add a few grinds of fresh pepper and a pinch of salt.
7) Repeat this process until you've used all of your zucchini, onions, and flour.
8) Pour your milk / cream mixture over the top.
9) Sprinkle over thyme & nutmeg. Dot with butter.
10) Top with breadcrumbs and remaining cheese.
11) Cover with foil.
12) Bake until zucchini is cooked through but not mushy. Start testing at 30 minutes by inserting a fork into the dish. If it pierces the zucchini easily, it's done. Test at 5 minute increments.
13) Remove the foil for the last 5 minutes of cooking so the cheese can melt.
14) Cool slightly before serving.

#zucchinirecipes #recipedevelopment #recipe #augratin #casserole #cooking #quicksidedish

0:00 what the heck is that veg?
0:20 why this dish?
1:20 that veg is...
2:00 method review
3:00 prepping zukes
6:00 layering ingredients
9:00 top it off
10:00 bake
11:00 final thoughts