Having our downstairs bath and laundry room torn up for the past two weeks has resulted in lots of chaos and a very messy house. I have pretty much thrown my hands up, especially knowing that once this project is finished order can be restored and I will also get a great big surge of motivation to tackle all things housekeeping related. As far as cooking goes: I have mainly been preparing really simple meals such as: brown two pounds of ground beef, pour in two jars pasta sauce, boil pot of water, add (gluten free) noodles. Why the bathroom project is affecting my meal planning abilities, I don’t know. I am just sort of paralyzed.
However, I did get ambitious the other day and I made something really delicious, the recipe courtesy of my good friend Eve. For background: Eve is one of those talented people who can create something wonderful out of what she has on hand even if she hasn’t been to the grocery store in over a week and is really having to scrounge. I am one of those people who despite being mostly a super healthy eater, will order pizza on those days. Eve makes cooking and baking seem effortless. It is typical to arrive to her home and have her offer me something she has just baked (last week it was pumpkin sticky buns!) The week before, I stopped by to help her daughter with her knitting, and was lucky enough to arrive at dinnertime. Eve fixed me a little plate of something she had just put together off the top of her head. It was really, really good. A few days later, she sent out an email with the recipe to a few of her friends. I asked her if I could share it here:
Hello friends who like to eat food,
I invented this recipe the other night and everyone in my house loved it. The first time, I included sausage so it was more like a main dish. The second time I omitted the sausage and served it as a side with roast chicken. It is not dairy-free, but it is a good gluten-free dish!
Autumn Vegetable Gratin (sounds like a fancy name for casserole)
1 sweet potato, peeled and sliced thin
1 small or half a large butternut squash, peeled, seeded and sliced thin
2 apples, peeled, cored and sliced thin
1 onion, peeled and sliced thin
1 1/2 – 2 cups heavy cream
1/2 to 1 cup chicken broth (Ginny piping in to say that you can omit the broth. I do and just add the full 2 cups cream.)
1 1/2 cups Parmesan cheese
3 tbl. olive oil
1 1/2 tsp. thyme
salt and pepper
1. Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees. Butter the bottom and sides of a 9×13 pan.
2. Put the olive oil in a large skillet and heat over med-high heat. Add sliced onions and cook slowly over MED heat (don’t let onions burn or get too brown!) for about 15 minutes. You will know they are done when they are a deep golden-brown color.
3. Meanwhile, slice sweet potato, squash and apples. You can use a mandolin or do it by hand, but try not to make them very thick.
4. Put a layer of sweet potato on bottom of the pan, using about half the sweet potato. Next put a layer of squash, using about half the prepared squash. Next add all the sliced apples. Then add the caramelized onions. Layer the rest of the sweet potato, then the last of the squash.
5. Heat the cream with the thyme and salt and pepper until it just comes to a boil. Quickly remove from heat and pour over the vegetables. Add the chicken broth and cover the top with Parmesan cheese. Cover loosely with foil and bake for about 45 minutes, or until cream and cheese are bubbly and the vegetables can be pierced easily with a knife. Let cool for about 5 minutes then serve.
OPTIONAL:
Saute 3-4 sausages until brown on all sides. Add the onions. When cooked, slice and add to the casserole in the same layer as the onions.
yum, this looks extremely warming and delicious.
I made your potato/summer sqaush gratin this summer and it was awesome too.
tonight we were inspired by Family Fun magazine to have a sweet potato sundae bar, basically just baked sweet potatoes with a table full of topping options and everyone loved it even the kids who don’t normally like sweet potatoes. I put out all the toppings first and then the sweet potatoes at the very last minute.
so, I am out of sweet potatoes right now, but can’t wait to make this gratin, as I have everything else on hand.
Thank you for sharing this. I have a dear friend who has just been told to cut out all gluten by her doctor. I’m on the lookout for good recipes to share with her. This sounds wonderful and I think it would be a great addition to a Thanksgiving meal.
Thank you for aknowledging how paralyzing it can be to be living around a house-project, such as a bathroom remodel. I too, feel the same paralysis, even if it is just working around painting in one room. You are not alone! Imagine how satisfying it will be once it is complete!
I never thought about that combo but man that sounds amazing! Thank you for sharing!
Mmmhh! That sounds yummy!!! Thank you for sharing! This will stand soon on our table.
I am housebound with a toddler with a cold tomorrow and have all of these ingredients. My house is going to smell awesome and we will be eating this for lunch!!
This sounds like a lovely fall meal! Making this for sure! Thank you and your sweet friend Eve for sharing! 🙂
Ginny,
That looks delicious!! Thanks to you and your friend Eve for sharing the recipe.
I understand how you feel when the house is in disarray from a project. I get paralyzed too, until the order can be restored. 🙂 Then I have a huge surge of energy to get things in their place.
Love, Taryn
That picture of your little girl at the stove is so beautiful! It reminds me of the traditions of cooking passed down through our families. really lovely.
House projects always make me feel a bit chaotic inside…they mess up my normal!
Oh thank you! I happen to have nothing in the house, and sick kids who make me reluctant to take the 20 minute walk to the store (especially since we need both milk and OJ, which means I’d have to carry a heavy beverage–both won’t fit in my stroller). But I have these things! And some leftover chicken!
I loved this as well. I made a second batch that evening made the first one and stuck it in the freezer for later. You beat me to the punch! I told Eve I was
(rest of sentence) …going to put it on the internet too, but you beat me to the punch! I think your post about Eve is much better than I could have done.
Yum!! Thanks for sharing!
Sounds fabulous, and similar to a soup I’ve been making recipe called Autumn Chili. YUM! I need another butternut squash and I’m set on ingredients! Thanks 🙂
This sounds like heaven on earth. I will be trying this as soon as I can get to the orchard for some apples.
YUM! I’ll be trying this the next time we go to the store.
This looks delicious and will be a great thing to add to our winter-repetoire. We have all of these things on hand too, even sausage, so will make it this week!
I’m planning my menu today for the next two weeks and I think this will have to be added in! 🙂
Have I ever told you that I love your kitchen, Ginny?
Wow, this dish looks de-li-cious! Thank you so much for sharing! I just wrote down the recipe, and will definitely try it this week. I discovered your blog about two weeks ago – I think I was looking for textiles and knitting blogs – and I love it, it really is inspiring.
Greetings from Québec city!
I finally decided to have this gratin for diner, and I must say it is the BEST gratin I ever made! It is perfect for fall and winter, and since here it lasts a good 6 months, well… I will need to eat good things like these! Bon appétit to all of you who will try it! The sooner, the better…
Sounds really good, too bad that dairy is so heavy to me.
I think it would be pretty good with just chicken broth and some Parmesan cheese on top. It comes out pretty saucy so some people might prefer less liquid anyway. It’s making me hungry reading about it and I might be inspired to make it again tonight!
Thank you Eve, sounds like a great idea.
Okay…I need Bret to pick me up a butternut squash this afternoon! This looks super good!
Looks so good and we are gluten free here. Thanks for sharing!
Yum! This sounds very similar to a favorite of mine from Martha:
http://www.wholeliving.com/131839/apple-leek-and-butternut-squash-gratin
Oh my, that looks delicious. I somehow have all the ingredients and will make this for dinner tonight, thanks!
yummy, onto my list! thanks for sharing!!
Yumm! The sausage way sound delicious!
:)Lisa
Ooh, thanks to you and your friend Eve (love that name!) for sharing this recipe! I’m going to have to make a stab at making it dairy free. Sounds so yummy!
That looks fantastic! I completely empathize with the lack of motivation on menus and housework with a house project going on. We are so close to finishing our project, but like you, I have let housework go. I am so excited for the day I can regain order in my home! I can’t wait to see your progress! http://www.thepomegranatechronicles.com/spaces/tuesdays-space-raising-the-roof/
I have a heap of apples from our trip to Virginia, and this looks amazing!! I love when we can come up with lovely meals with a seemingly “bare cupboard”. Didn’t our great-grandmothers and grandmothers do the very same because it was the only option? I think that this is a beautiful art-form. Thank you Eve and Ginny for sharing. (What is a Family and The Art of Homemaking by Edith Schaeffer are great go-tos for inspiration).
Sounds delicious! Unfortunately my three Asperger family members are so anxious about new foods… this sounds like one to cook for me and my girl! xx
Sounds yummy, I make something similar using blue cheese as a topping.
Do you skip the cream when you make it with blue cheese?
Your Autumn Vegetable Gratin looks wonderful. I love the way everyone gets stuck in helping.
I am not a great lover of sweet potatoes (the word in Afrikaans is Patat or Soet Patat) but I am definitely going to give it a try.
Have you drawn straws yet as to who gets to use the new bathroom for the first time? Can’t wait to see it.
This recipe looks delicious! And something I never thought to make. Will definitely be trying this soon!