Courgettes and Tomatoes au Gratin

This is a very quick and easy vegetarian supper dish for two people, especially good if you grow your own tomatoes and courgettes and have a glut to use up. You could also serve it as a starter for four people. Vegetarians might like to know that a vegetarian parmesan-style cheese is available from www.bookhamcheese.co.uk

Serves 2-4

This recipe is taken from Delia’s Vegetarian Collection.

Courgettes and Tomatoes au Gratin

Ingredients
4 medium courgettes, sliced but not peeled
4 large tomatoes, skinned and sliced
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 large clove garlic, crushed
4 oz (110 g) Mozzarella or Cheddar cheese, cut into slices
4 level tablespoons grated Parmesan (Parmigiano Reggiano); see recipe introduction
1 level tablespoon fresh torn basil
salt and freshly milled black pepper
Pre-heat the oven to gas mark 5, 375°F (190°C).
Equipment

Method

If you have the time, salt, drain and dry the sliced courgettes: layer them in a colander, sprinkling each layer with salt, and place a suitably sized plate on top. Weigh this down with a heavy object (like scale weights) and after 30 minutes quite a bit of water will have been drawn out.

Dry them really thoroughly in a clean cloth and then they're ready to cook.

Heat the oil in a frying pan large enough to hold the courgettes in one layer (otherwise do them in two batches), add the crushed garlic and sauté the courgette slices to a nice golden colour on each side.

Next arrange layers of courgettes, cheese slices and sliced tomatoes in a heatproof gratin dish so that they overlap each other slightly like slates on a roof.

Finally sprinkle on the grated Parmesan, basil and salt and freshly milled pepper. Then bake on a high shelf in the oven for 30 minutes.

Serve this with lots of crusty bread and a green salad with a sharp lemony dressing.

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