Need a little more French in ya? Last week, I shared my recipe for a small batch of mini Chocolate Eclairs. This week, we’re making another classic French dish for two: Endive Gratin with Ham and Gruyere.
I firmly believe that anything wrapped in Black Forest ham and covered with Gruyere cheese is delicious, but this endive gratin takes the cake. Would that be the crepe cake? Oui!
Endive is a slightly bitter lettuce that grows in the dark during the winter. Well, technically, first the plant is grown in the light to develop its roots, and then the roots are transplanted into sand and allowed to grow in the dark. The lack of light creates the perfectly white leaves that you see on most of the plant. Then, at the end of the growing process, it is exposed briefly to light to develop chlorophyll (color) at the tips of the leaves. This amazing lettuce belongs in your grocery cart.
If you need a little help choosing endive at the store, look for bright white, firm leaves that still have a bit of hair left on them. See the fuzz on the endive below? That’s a good thing. It’s a sign of freshness. Actually, all lettuce has tiny hairs on the leaves, but you will only see it if the lettuce is very fresh. See, I’m still putting my Master’s degree to work—I scope lettuce for hairs in the produce department.
Look at these baby lettuce taking a nap in their ham blankets while bathing in bubbly cheese. Some days, I wish I was an endive.
Quick update for ya: I’ve been sharing some of my dinner for two recipes over on Food Fanatic, and usually I make you click on over for the recipe. Well, I hear y’all didn’t like that. I’m sorry for making you hop all over the internetz just to get my recipes. From now on, the recipes will be featured here, too. In the meantime, I will go back and add the recipes to all of my dinners, so stay tuned for that!
I rarely cook with endive, but if you’re going to add melted cheese to it…
can you believe i have never had endive before? I need to change that now. That spoon is so pretty.
You are steadily populating my “date night recipes” file! This looks amazing!!
when are you and I going to have a girls date night?! :)
Lettuce smothered in baked cheese, how did I never think of this! Amazing!!
It’s impossible to not love lettuce like this ;)
What a great meal idea!!! Might do this for our next date night :)
umm hi – Your serving spoon? I need deets! and yes I absolutely adore French food, it is my favorite indulgence second only to Italian (which I am, so duh). but uhh that gruyere! this looks utterly divine :)
Hi Christine! I bought it at a podunk antique shop in Napa. Sorry :( I do know that it’s called speckled enamelware, and you should be able to find it pretty easily on the internetz! :) Thanks :)
I don’t do much cooking with endive, but that needs to change with this recipe! This looks wonderful!
Ya know i consider myself pretty food educated …but can you believe i dont have the slightest idea what an endive tastes like?
I think you’ll like it, Lisa! It’s crispy, clean and only slightly bitter. You’ll hardly notice the bitter when it’s covered in cheese and ham, but if you eat it raw in a salad, you’ll taste it. I love it :)
This looks delicious! What might you substitute for ham?
These look so good! I might just make this tonight! Hopefully it will trick my husband, I won’t tell him there is lettuce in there.
I always could use more French food in my life…can’t help it…maybe it’s that French major of mine…nah it’s deeper than that!
This is an interesting way to serve endive. I’ve only seen it as a holder for a chopped salad or dip…this looks so much better! Mmmm gruyere!
This is really a very nice dish, very elegant. Absolutely love it!
Shut the front door!! Yum.
Alex would not be a fan of this (crazy boy does not like ham, I graciously choose to still love him anyway) but I would be ALLOVERIT. So I’m going to need to make it as a dinner for ONE when he’s gone. Say…honey…when are you leaving next? ;-)
Endive usually feels a little too bitter to me…but if it’s bathed in cheese, then that’s a whole other thing. A whole other thing I need for dinner.
When do you add the nutmeg and pepper?
Yikes! Sorry. Recipe edit fail. You add it to the white sauce after thickening.
If you boil the endives first for 15-18 minutes in salted water they will lose some of the bitterness (in a good way), and then proceed with your recipe as usual. This is how my Maman would prepare it for us in France.
That’s awesome, Madeline! Thanks for the authentic tip straight from France. I’m going to try it next time :)