Endive And Prosciutto Gratin

Recipe Ingredients

		Endive
12		Firm Belgian endive heads
5 tablespoons	75ml	Butter - divided
1/4 teaspoon	1.3ml	Salt
		Juice of 1/2 small lemon - (1 tbspn)
1/4 cup	59ml	Water
		Cheese Sauce
2 tablespoons	30ml	Butter
3 tablespoons	45ml	Flour
2 cups	474ml	Milk
1/4 teaspoon	1.3ml	Salt
		Freshly-grated nutmeg - as needed
1 oz	28g	Finely grated Parmigiano-Reggiano
2 oz	56g	Medium-grated Swiss cheese
		Assembly
12		Prosciutto - (1/3 lb) - trimmed of fat edges
3 tablespoons	45ml	Grated Swiss cheese
1 tablespoon	15ml	Butter - cubed

Recipe Instructions

For the Endive: Heat the oven to 400 degrees. Trim the bottoms of the endives and discard. Wash the whole endives under running water and shake dry. Cut the endives in half lengthwise.

Smear 1 1/2 tablespoons of butter in a 9- by 13-inch stove-to-oven casserole. Lay the endives in it so they cover the bottom. Sprinkle with some of the salt and half the lemon juice. Make another layer of endives, and add more salt and lemon juice. Add the water. Cut the remaining butter into small pieces and dot the top of the endives. Cover and simmer over medium heat for 10 minutes. Uncover and boil rapidly until the liquid is reduced to 2 or 3 tablespoons, for about another 10 minutes.

Place a sheet of buttered wax paper over the pan, cover with a lid and place in the oven. Reduce the heat to 325 degrees. Bake for 1 hour. Remove the casserole cover but leave the wax paper and bake until the endives are golden, about 20 to 30 minutes

For the Cheese Sauce: Melt the butter in a heavy-bottomed, medium-sized saucepan over medium heat, then stir in the flour until smooth. Cook 2 to 3 minutes to get rid of the raw flour taste. Remove from the heat and set aside.

Bring 2 cups of milk to boil in a small saucepan and add the grated nutmeg, about 11 passes on the grater. Whisk the heated milk into the roux, followed by the Parmigiano-Reggiano and Swiss cheeses. As it thickens, cover and set aside.

For Assembly: Heat the broiler and set a rack in the middle of the oven. Butter a shallow 2-quart baking dish. Add half of the cheese sauce. Lay the prosciutto slices on a work surface. Add 2 endive halves to a prosciutto slice, then roll the slice up over the endives to form a bundle. Repeat with the remaining endive halves and prosciutto slices.

Neatly arrange the 12 prosciutto-endive wraps in the baking dish. Cover the wraps with the remaining cheese sauce. Sprinkle with the Swiss cheese and dot with the butter. Set the dish in the oven and broil until bubbling and the cheese has browned a bit, 3 to 4 minutes. You'll want to do this just before you serve dinner so that the dish is nice and hot.

This recipe yields 6 servings.

Each serving: 340 calories; 815 mg. sodium; 81 mg. cholesterol; 27 grams fat; 15 grams saturated fat; 12 grams carbohydrates; 14 grams protein; 3.65 grams fiber.

Source:
The Los Angeles Times, 11-06-2002

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