Fall Recipe: Butternut Squash Gratin

Love fall recipes.  Here's one of my favs!

Ingredients:

Butter

6 Garlic cloves

Leeks

Cream

Butternut Squash, peeled

Nutmeg

Parmesan Cheese

Salt and pepper

Method:

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Start by cleaning your leeks. Wash them. Slice off the greens that surround the white part of the leek, removing the darkest and toughest outermost leaves. Cut the leeks in half lengthwise (all but 2 inches of the greens), wash them again, and then slice them fine. Then soak in water to get rid of the dirt and sand. Dry the leeks.  Sweat the leeks in clarified butter until soft. 


Smear butter on the bottom of an oval gratin dish. Mince 6 cloves of garlic and spread them on the bottom of the dish as well. 

The squash must be sliced very thin. Have everything ready to go before slicing it. Put the heavy cream and nutmeg in a bowl. Season with salt and finely ground pepper. The seasoning is what makes the dish good. Make sure to taste it before adding it to the squash. 

Slice the squash using a food processor and place in a large bowl. Add the leeks and grated Parmesan cheese. 

You must have butter, garlic and cheese to make a good gratin! 

Spread the squash mixture into the bottom of the dish. Add the cream mixture on top. Make sure to get in between the squash. They must be completely covered in cream. Sprinkle more Parmesan cheese on top. Clean the edges of the dish. Put a larger tray underneath the dish in case the cream bubbles over. Bake for about an hour until the knife slides through easily. You can make this on lower temperatures as well.