Vegetables Au Gratin

Here is a fairly complicated recipe to keep you guys busy while i am in silence :)

You will need:

for the white sauce:

3 heaped tablespoons whole wheat flour
100 gms butter
1 litre milkat room temperature
1/2 tin of cheddar (amul, brittania, etc) cheese grated


In a fairly large vessel, heat the butter till it melts. Add the flour to it and cook on a low flame. The flour should get cooked, it changes colour slightly and starts to smell real good. Dont overcook, if the mixture turns dull brown or starts smelling like its burnt, it probably is and you will need to start over.

To this add about half the milk slowly at first, stirring vigourously and continuously so that there are no lumps formed. Don't worry too much if lumps do get formed we will tackle them later :) Once you have a smooth mixture add the rest of the milk and stir gently, seeing to it that the sauce doesnt stick to the bottom of the vessel, until nice and smooth. Keep it on low gas. This takes a bit of time. If there are lumps, i just whirr the mixture with a blender, and then return it to the gas for some more time. It should have thickened considerably.

Add 3/4th of the grated cheese to this and stir it in well. Let it boil and bubble for a while. Let it thicken to dropping consistency. Remove from gas and keep aside.

For the veggies, you will need

Handful of french beans, chopped finely into thin long pieces
1 medium carrot, chopped into thin juliennes
1 medium zucchini chopped into thin round slices
1/2 a broccoli (dont use too much broccoli otherwise it completely takes over the taste), chopped into small florets
1 packet of mushrooms chopped into biggish chunks (optional)
a small bunch of spinach hand shredded
a handful of green peas
10 fresh basil leaves
1 clove of garlic, minced (optional)
Olive oil 3-5 tablespoons
a small lump of mozzarella cheese

In a pan heat the olive oil, add the garlic and brown it a bit. Add the basil leaves.
Next add the french beans and let them cook for a bit. Then the carrot and broccoli and green peas. Once its all cooked (the veggies should not be overcooked, they need to remain crunchy), add the zucchini and mushrooms. Finally add the spinach and remove from heat in about 30 seconds.

Add the white sauce to the almost cooked veggies.

Now grease a baking tray with butter. Add the white sauce + veggies to the baking tray. Garnish the top of the tray with the remaining cheese, you may also add bits of mozzarella cheese.



Bake in an oven for about 20-30 minutes or so at 200 deg, until the cheese on the top has melted and turned a yummy golden brown. Do not over bake, coz that makes the whole dish loose its moisture. It should be golden gooey brown on the top and soft thick moist whiteness below with crunchy bits of veggies...





Serve immediately, nice n hot with toasted whole wheat bread or multigrain bread. Some people love to eat this with tomato ketchup... not me! :)