Recipe: Chicons au gratin new style, so delicious you’ll never eat Belgian endive the same way again

Baked dishes are the patron saints of comfort food. They’re a nostalgic feast for the taste buds and food for the soul. In Ovenschotels, Wim Ballieu brings together his 60 favorite baked dishes. Vegetarian, with meat or fish, and above all: packed with vegetables. Anyone who thinks you can only eat baked dishes in winter is seriously mistaken (and missing out on a lot in life, too). Make these delicious chicons au gratin new style!

Instead of serving mashed potatoes with Belgian endive wrapped in ham and cheese, we make a potato and cheese rösti that goes on top of the rolls.

How to make chicons au gratin new style

• Preheat the oven to 180 °C.
• Remove the hard core from the Belgian endive, but make sure the leaves do not come loose.
• Melt 25 g of butter in a pan, place the Belgian endive in it and optionally add a small splash of water. Cook covered or place some baking paper over the Belgian endive.
• Melt the remaining butter in a sauspan. Add the flour and cook for 3 to 4 minutes without browning. Gradually pour in the milk while stirring and mix until you have a thick saus. Season with nutmeg, pepper and salt.
• Wrap the Belgian endive in the ham. Grease an oven dish with some butter and place the rolls in it. Pour the saus over them.
• Mix the grated potatoes with the cheese. Divide the mixture over the saus.
• Bake for 35 minutes in the preheated oven until the rösti is golden brown and cooked through.

Tip: for the grated potato, you can use Aviko’s Rösti Original, or finely grate potatoes and squeeze them very well in a tea towel. Don’t do this too far in advance, though, or they will turn brown.

Title: Ovenschotels
Author: Wim Ballieu
Price: €24,50
Publisher: Pelckmans

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