Tomato Gratin

I'd like to take credit for this awesome dish, but I really feel like I need to give credit where it's due - Ina Garten's Scalloped Tomatoes.  I went through and added what I wanted, subtracted what I didn't want and my methods were a little different.  But I still wouldn't feel right if I didn't give Ina credit, as her recipe is great.  Ours is just better.  (Sorry, Ina!  We love you!) Justin was baking us a loaf of boule the other day, but whether it was due to temperatures or humidity, it just didn't rise as much as he'd hoped, so it came out a little dense.  I'd remembered seeing Ina make her Scalloped Tomatoes recipe and thought our dense bread would be perfect for this... and it was! 

I wondered why this dish was called "scalloped"; it was my understanding that meant a dish was made with a cream sauce.  So I did a little researching on the magic interweb and it seems there are a few different definitions of what "scalloped" means in the culinary world.  While I didn't find a solid answer, I did find this article that summed up the variances nicely.  Still, I didn't know if I really wanted to call this recipe Scalloped Tomatoes - I didn't know if it would really explain what the dish was to someone browsing recipe names.  Now, the same website that broke down "scalloped" has this to say about "au gratin":  "Au Gratin means garnished with crumbs (usually bread) and grated cheese, then baked or grilled (aka broiled.)"  I think this definition fits the bill for my recipe more.  Now, because I don't speak french, I don't know if it's grammatically correct to call the dish a "tomato gratin" or "tomatoes au gratin" and I couldn't find an answer on that.

I'm not sure how we've done all these recipes and not used a Black Flag song yet.  What the hell is going on?!  Rectified now... Black Flag (with a long-haired Rollins) doing "Nervous Breakdown".  -jen

TOMATO GRATIN
Prep/Cook Time:  25 minutes
Bake Time:  35 minutes
Difficulty:  Medium
Serves:  6-8

• 2.5 pounds (10-12) fresh Roma tomatoes, diced (1/2") 
• 2 teaspoons salt
• olive oil
• 2.5 cups cubed artisan bread (1/2")
• 1 tablespoon sugar
• 1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 1/2 cup rough-chopped green or kalamata olives
• 1/2 cup finely diced onion
• 1 tablespoon fresh minced garlic (5-6 cloves)
• 1/2 cup basil, roughly chopped or julienned, packed
• 1 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.  Prepare a shallow 2-quart baking dish (8"x8") with non-stick cooking spray.

Place diced tomatoes in a strainer over a bowl.  Toss with salt and set aside.

Heat 3 tablespoons of olive oil in a large skillet over a medium heat.  Add the bread cubes and toss in the olive oil to coat.  Let cubes toast into croutons, stirring often, until dark golden-brown and crispy, 5-8 minutes.  Add drained tomatoes, sugar, black pepper, olives, onion and garlic.  Cook an additional 3-5 minutes, stirring frequently.  Remove from heat and stir in basil.

Transfer mixture into prepared baking dish.  Sprinkle Parmesan over the top, and drizzle 2 tablespoons of olive oil over the Parmesan.  Bake, uncovered, for 35 minutes.  Serve hot.

Brussels Sprouts and Bacon Gratin

If you don't think you like brussels sprouts... you should try these.  You might change your mind.  These sprouts are so creamy and cheesy and delicious!  Loved 'em!  Even half-way through the cooking process, before the cream and cheese were even added, they tasted awesome!  I might have just stopped there, except I had the gratin game plan.

I was on a little psychobilly kick while cooking these... it somehow seemed appropriate, since I think of brussels sprouts as throwbacks to the 50's.  But these definitely aren't your mom or grandma's sprouts!  I kept coming back to the Horrorpops, so here's their "Miss Take". -jen

 BRUSSELS SPROUTS AND BACON GRATIN

• 3/4 pound bacon, chopped into 1" pieces
• 3 tablespoons butter (divided)
• 2 medium shallots, sliced
• 1 pound brussels sprouts, cut off brown ends
• 3/4 cup chicken broth, seasoned*
• pinch red pepper flakes
• 1 cup heavy cream
• 1 cup Gruyere cheese, shredded
• 1/4-1/2 cup panko bread crumbs

* I seasoned the chicken broth with about a teaspoon of the KFC Copycat seasoning.  If you don't have that, you could use seasoning salt or just salt and pepper.  The seasoning is really up to you.
 
Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.

In a large skillet (that has a fitted lid, which you'll need later) over medium-high heat, cook bacon until browned and crisp.  Remove with a slotted spoon and drain on some paper towels.  Set aside.

In the same skillet, keep about 1 tablespoon of the bacon fat, discarding the remainder.  Add 2 tablespoons of butter.  Melt over medium-high heat and add shallots.  Cook for several minutes until tender.  If your brussels sprouts are large, cut them in half.  If they're small, you can leave them whole.  Add brussels sprouts and just toss them around for 2-3 minutes to get a little browned.  Add the chicken broth to deglaze the pan (scrape up the crusty bits) and the red pepper flakes.  Bring to a boil, then cover and lower heat to simmer for about 7 minutes or until brussels sprouts are slightly tender when pierced with a fork.

Note:  At this point, you could just stop and eat the sprouts like this because they're delicious and it would be a lower-fat, lower-carb dish.  Or you can continue into the awesome, evil world of cream and cheese and bread crumbs!

If your skillet is oven safe, you can leave everything in it.  If not, transfer sprouts and shallots into a buttered 2-quart baking dish.  Add cream, shredded cheese, and crisped bacon.  Toss.  Melt remaining 1 tablespoon of butter and toss with panko.  Sprinkle buttered panko over the top.

Bake at 400 degrees F for 15-20 minutes, or until browned on top.

Shown here with some homemade chicken strips.