Turnip Blue Cheese Gratin

Recipe of the week: Turnip Blue Cheese Gratin

Raoul has lots of turnips and rutabagas at the farm.

This recipe was provided by our friends Sue and Buck at a recent bring-your-best-dish-ever potluck. It was delicious. The chef used rutabagas instead of turnips, but feel free to use either or mix and match.

Ingredients

2 cloves garlic, smashed
salt and pepper to taste
3/4 cup half-and-half cream
5 sprigs fresh thyme
1 bay leaf
2 large leeks - cleaned, and cut into 1/4 inch thick rounds
2 large turnips (or rutabagas), peeled and sliced
1 cup cubed butternut squash (optional)
4 large mushrooms, sliced (optional)
2 large carrots, sliced (optional)
1 teaspoon chopped fresh rosemary (optional)
1/2 cup crumbled blue cheese
1/4 cup shredded Gruyere cheese (optional)

Directions

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C). Butter a 2 quart casserole dish, rub with one of the garlic cloves, and sprinkle with a little salt. Set aside.
Heat the half-and-half in a small saucepan over medium heat. Add the thyme, bay leaf and both garlic cloves. Remove from the heat just before it boils.
Place the leek, turnip, squash, mushrooms and carrots into a large saucepan and fill with about 1 inch of water. Bring to a boil, cover and steam over medium heat for about 5 minutes. Drain and layer vegetables into the prepared casserole dish. Sprinkle rosemary in between the layers. Season with salt and pepper and sprinkle blue cheese and Gruyere cheese over the top. Strain the half-and-half and pour into the casserole.
Bake, covered, in the preheated oven until vegetables are tender and sauce is thick, about 40 minutes. Uncover for the last 20 minutes to allow the top to brown.