Cheesy gratin

My son Jake and I love zucchini and eat a lot of it in the summer when we can buy it from the farm. We will grill it and toss with basil and feta, or make crispy zucchini fries. He especially adores my zucchini and corn casserole.

Last night we made a cheesy gratin. He was inspired to top it with these crispy fried onions we had in the pantry instead of breadcrumbs. We baked it in two small ceramic pans and ate it as our main course. The recipe will make four side portions, but we ate it all. It was quite delicious, maybe a bit mushy but melted in my mouth like a custard. The fried onions were half crispy, I think next time I will sprinkle them on when halfway baked. We cooked it until it was all bubbly then put it under the broiler to brown and get the cheese all crispy. We will definitely have that again and again.

Zucchini gratin
1 1/2 lbs yellow zucchini

2 teaspoons kosher salt

2 tablespoons butter

3-4 green onions, sliced

1 teaspoon fresh rosemary, finely chopped

2 tablespoons flour

1 cup milk

Freshly ground black pepper

Ground nutmeg

1 cup gruyere cheese, shredded

1/4 cup crispy fried onions

Slice the zucchini 1/4-inch thick and put into colander, toss with salt and let sit 20 minutes. Pat zucchini dry with paper towel. Preheat oven to 400°F. Melt butter in pan with deep sides over med-high temperature, add green onions, zucchini and rosemary and sauté for about five minutes, tossing and stirring occasionally. When zucchini starts to get a little golden, sprinkle in flour and stir to coat evenly. Pour in milk and stir quickly to blend.Cook for a few minutes,stirring continuously,until mixture is thickened. Season lightly with salt, pepper, and nutmeg. Take off heat and pour half into a baking dish, top with half cheese, top with remaining zucchini and then cheese. Sprinkle top with fried onions. Bake for 20 to 30 minutes until the top is golden brown and the cheese is all melted and brown on the edges. Let sit for 5 minutes before serving.

Makes 2-4 servings.