Leek Gratin....the belle of the ball.

The belle of the ball...Leek Gratin

Have you ever gone into the supermarket and seen these giant looking scallions?  Well, that’s a leek.  Only this onion on steroids doesn’t taste anything like a scallion but a refined, subtle, mild, delicate, clean tasting onion.  They are fabulous in soups, fish dishes, braised, blanched, poached or in this case made into a gratin. 

I happen to love leeks and I try to cook with them as often as possible.  I sometimes make pilaf and sauté them in some butter and cook along with the rice… I use them in most of my fish dishes and almost every soup I make… they’re what you call my “go to” onion.  But I’ve never really thought of them as something you could eat on their own.  That was until tonight.  I had never made them like this before and I have to tell you… they were the belle of the ball tonight on our dinner table.  Everyone enjoyed them and they were light and savory and really outstanding, if I do say so myself.  I made some oven baked chicken breasts that were lightly breaded and some pilaf and it was delicious.  

So here it is, my lovely little belle… ma cherie… Leek Gratin

(ok, I’m getting carried away with my food! I know, I can’t help it!!!)

Leek Gratin

The Leeks

15-20  Leeks Cut in half, using only the white onion part.

Place halved leeks in boiling salted water for 8 minutes.  Remove and place into an ovenproof casserole dish that has been coated with non-stick spray.

The Sauce

½ cup flour

3 ½ tablespoons butter (cut in small pieces)

Salt & white pepper

This light based roux sauce really adds a creamy-ness to the gratin that can’t be duplicated otherwise. 

Put the flour into a medium size pot and gradually add 1/3 cup cold water, to make a paste.  In a separate pot, heat 2 cups of water.  As soon as it comes to a boil, pour slowly into the paste whisking gently and continuously. Add your salt & white pepper.  Cook on low heat, stirring occasionally for 5-7 more minutes.  Do not add the butter until you are just about to pour it over your leeks.

Assembly

Place cooked leeks into a casserole dish or individual mini casserole dishes.  Coat the leeks with the white sauce and sprinkle a bit of grated gruyere cheese on top.  Bake in an oven that has been preheated to 400 degrees for 25 minutes or until the top is golden brown. 

**sidenote**

Make sure that you soak and rinse the leeks very well in cold water to remove any excess sand or dirt. 

Do not overcook the leeks in the hot water or else they will turn to mush.

Don’t discard the top green part of the leek as you can use it for soup stock.  It has excellent flavor!