- Sidebar: Speaking from experience
Click here to go back to main article.- As many of you know, I recently took a two-month sabbatical to enroll in a professional culinary program, from which I graduated May 11. Cooking has long been a passion of mine, as have French and Italian language and culture. The program at the Robert Reynolds Chefs Studio afforded me an opportunity to tie together and explore these interests.
- Aside from having had the unique opportunity of unlearning everything I ever knew from many years of home cooking—and eventually becoming a pretty skilled chef—the experience was a revelation to me. Primarily this was because of the shift in perspective I gained from immersing myself in a very different world than that of marketing communications. Spending two months adapting to different routines, people, attitudes, and ways of life helped me, upon my return, to see the professional world I’ve always known in new and insightful ways.
- Here is a recipe from Robert Reynolds that we prepared at the studio and that I also cook at home. It is the quintessential French schoolchild’s dinner treat (which tells you a lot about the sophistication of French children’s palates) and is delicious as a light supper with a salad or as a side dish to grilled or roasted meats. The aromas from this dish as it bakes are seductive. And now you know what to do with those funny Belgian endive you’ve seen at the market for years. Enjoy!
- Endive au Gratin
- 6-8 whole Belgian endives, rinsed
4 tbsp. butter
4 tbsp. flour
2 cups whole milk, warmed
1 bay leaf
Salt, pepper, and fresh grated nutmeg to taste
¼ lb. very thinly sliced black forest ham, slices cut into half lengthwise
1 to 1½ cups grated gruyere cheese - Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
- Bring a medium pot of water to a boil, add 1 tbsp. of salt, and simmer the endive until they are just tender, about 8 minutes (depending upon their size). Remove them from the water and drain on a towel.
- Make a béchamel sauce: melt the butter on low heat and stir in the flour. Stir a few minutes to eliminate the raw flour taste, then gradually add the warm milk off heat, stirring vigorously with a wooden spoon to prevent lumps. Whisk in the pan if necessary to smooth it out. Add the bay leaf. Continue cooking the béchamel gently until it thickens to the consistency of very heavy cream—this will take several minutes or more. Add 1 tsp. of salt and about ¼ tsp. grated nutmeg and pepper to taste. Then taste the sauce carefully and add more salt as needed to make the sauce flavorful.
- Butter a gratin dish or other shallow baking dish just large enough to hold the endive in one layer. Wrap the fat end of each endive in a half slice of ham, then lay the endive down into the pan with the ham seam side down. Pour the béchamel over the endive, sprinkle with grated cheese, and bake about 20 minutes or until it is golden brown and bubbly. Serve warm.
