Tomato & Summer Squash Gratin
Recipe by Di Pescara
Executive Chef / Partner Mychael Bonner from Saranello’s and Di Pescara is sharing a family recipe for Tomato & Summer Squash Gratin, a simple, one-pot dish that’s perfect to serve with whatever produce you have in the kitchen.
Chef Mychael teamed up with Urban Growers Collective, a Chicago based non-profit whose mission is to cultivate nourishing environments which support health, economic development, healing and creativity through urban agriculture.
Tomato & Summer Squash Gratin
An easy one pot dish
Serving Size: 4
Ingredients:
INGREDIENTS FOR THE BASE:
1/4 cup of olive oil
3 medium onions, peeled and diced
4 cloves of garlic, minced
1 cup of zucchini (diced and seeded); use a spoon to scrape out the seeds
1 cup of yellow squash (diced and seeded)
2 medium sized tomatoes, grated (can also use tomato puree as a substitute)
3 Tbsp basil, roughly chopped
1/2 cup of grated parmesan cheese
2 Tbsp softened butter (to line baking dish)
Salt and pepper to taste
INGREDIENTS FOR THE TOPPINGS:
3-4 medium sized zucchini sliced 1/4 inch thick
3-4 medium to small sized yellow squash sliced 1/4 inch thick
4 medium sized tomatoes sliced 1/4 inch slick
2 Tbsp of olive oil
Salt and freshly cracked black pepper
2 Tbsp of grated parmesan
Method:
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees
2. Using a large, heavy bottom sauté pan, heat olive oil over medium low heat
3. Add onions and cook them slowly until golden brown and soft (approximately 30-40 minutes stirring occasionally)
4. Add minced garlic and cook for 3-4 minutes
5. Add zucchini and yellow squash. Cook for approximately 10 minutes until squash softens and releases its juices
6. Add grated tomato and cook until moisture reduces by half
7. Season with salt and pepper
8. Stir in basil and cook until most of the moisture has evaporated
9. Add parmesan cheese
10. Taste and correct seasoning as necessary. At this point, the mixture should be thick with little moisture.
11. Spread mixture into a buttered 9 inch baking dish using a spoon or spatula
12. Begin to layer the sliced ingredients onto the top of the mixture from left to right in this order:
One row of zucchini placed tightly together until reaching the other side of the pan
Repeat this step using the sliced tomatoes, making sure to slightly overlap the zucchini with the tomatoes
End with the sliced yellow squash, also slightly overlapping the tomato
Repeat until the whole dish is covered
13. Season with additional salt, pepper, and parmesan cheese to taste
14. Cover with parchment paper and with aluminum foil on top of the parchment paper
15. Bake for 20-25 minutes, or until vegetables are soft
16. Remove from the oven and allow the dish to rest for 10 minutes
17. Serve and enjoy!
