Spinach Gratin
One of my favorite kitchen stores is Williams & Sonoma. Unfortunately, they can be fairly experience. One of the great things that they do is they often display recipe cards next to their inventory. Recently I came across this recipe for Spinach Gratin. Since I absolutely LOVE spinach I knew that it was something that I had to try. Fortunately my mom decided to try it before me, so she was able to tell it if it was worth trying. She and my dad loved it, so I decided it was worth trying.Give it a try. You won't be sorry you did.
Spinach Gratin
Ingredients:
3 Tbs. unsalted butter, plus more for greasing
1 cup fresh bread crumbs
1/3 cup grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese
2 tsp. vegetable oil
2 lb. baby spinach (I used three packages of frozen spinach, since I already had them in the freezer)
2/3 cup heavy cream
2/3 cup half-and-half (I didn't have half and half, so I used 2/3 cup of milk with the heavy cream)
1/4 cup diced yellow onion (I used one small onion)
1 Tbs. plus 1 tsp. all-purpose flour
1 clove Pinch of freshly grated nutmeg
1 bay leaf 1 fresh thyme sprig, plus leaves from 1 thyme sprig
1/2 cup grated Emmentaler cheese (I used cheddar cheese)
Kosher salt and freshly ground white pepper, to taste
3 Tbs. unsalted butter, plus more for greasing
1 cup fresh bread crumbs
1/3 cup grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese
2 tsp. vegetable oil
2 lb. baby spinach (I used three packages of frozen spinach, since I already had them in the freezer)
2/3 cup heavy cream
2/3 cup half-and-half (I didn't have half and half, so I used 2/3 cup of milk with the heavy cream)
1/4 cup diced yellow onion (I used one small onion)
1 Tbs. plus 1 tsp. all-purpose flour
1 clove Pinch of freshly grated nutmeg
1 bay leaf 1 fresh thyme sprig, plus leaves from 1 thyme sprig
1/2 cup grated Emmentaler cheese (I used cheddar cheese)
Kosher salt and freshly ground white pepper, to taste
Directions: Preheat an oven to 400°F. Butter a 9 1/2-by-7-inch oval gratin dish.
In a fry pan over medium heat, melt 2 Tbs. of the butter. Add the bread crumbs and cook, stirring, until lightly toasted, about 6 minutes.
Remove the pan from the heat and stir in the Parmigiano-Reggiano. Let cool to room temperature.
In a Dutch oven over medium-high heat, warm 1 tsp. of the oil. Add half the spinach and cook, stirring occasionally, until just wilted, 3 to 4 minutes.
Transfer to a colander and drain, pressing out any excess water with the back of a spoon. Transfer to a large bowl. Repeat with the remaining 1 tsp. oil and the spinach. In a small saucepan over medium heat, warm the cream and half-and-half; do not allow the mixture to boil. In a large saucepan over medium heat, melt the remaining 1 Tbs. butter. Add the onion and cook, stirring, until translucent but not brown, 5 to 6 minutes. Add the flour and cook, stirring constantly, until nutty and just golden, about 1 minute. Slowly whisk in the cream mixture. Add the clove, nutmeg, bay leaf and thyme sprig and simmer, whisking constantly, until thickened, about 3 minutes. Remove from the heat and let stand for 5 minutes, then strain into a bowl. 
Return the mixture to the saucepan, set over medium heat and stir in the Emmentaler cheese until melted.
Fold the sauce into the spinach and season with salt and white pepper. Transfer to the prepared gratin dish and top with the toasted bread crumbs. Bake until the gratin is golden brown on top, about 10 minutes. Sprinkle with the thyme leaves. 
I served the spinach gratin with beef tenderloin and fresh bread from Costco.
In a fry pan over medium heat, melt 2 Tbs. of the butter. Add the bread crumbs and cook, stirring, until lightly toasted, about 6 minutes.
Remove the pan from the heat and stir in the Parmigiano-Reggiano. Let cool to room temperature.In a Dutch oven over medium-high heat, warm 1 tsp. of the oil. Add half the spinach and cook, stirring occasionally, until just wilted, 3 to 4 minutes.
Transfer to a colander and drain, pressing out any excess water with the back of a spoon. Transfer to a large bowl. Repeat with the remaining 1 tsp. oil and the spinach. In a small saucepan over medium heat, warm the cream and half-and-half; do not allow the mixture to boil. In a large saucepan over medium heat, melt the remaining 1 Tbs. butter. Add the onion and cook, stirring, until translucent but not brown, 5 to 6 minutes. Add the flour and cook, stirring constantly, until nutty and just golden, about 1 minute. Slowly whisk in the cream mixture. Add the clove, nutmeg, bay leaf and thyme sprig and simmer, whisking constantly, until thickened, about 3 minutes. Remove from the heat and let stand for 5 minutes, then strain into a bowl. 
Return the mixture to the saucepan, set over medium heat and stir in the Emmentaler cheese until melted.
Fold the sauce into the spinach and season with salt and white pepper. Transfer to the prepared gratin dish and top with the toasted bread crumbs. Bake until the gratin is golden brown on top, about 10 minutes. Sprinkle with the thyme leaves. 
I served the spinach gratin with beef tenderloin and fresh bread from Costco.
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