Butternut Squash and (Sweet) Potato Gratin With Walnut Crust

Submitted by spatchcock

"Terrific fall recipe. We loved this as a healthy vegetarian meal....lots of vitamins. It would be perfect on Thanksgiving--to take the place of the marshmallow and canned sweet potatoes usual side dish. I used my food processor to chop everything---doing it by hand would take longer than I've indicated here!"

 

• Ready In: 1hr 35mins
• Ingredients: 8
• Serves: 9

ingredients

• 2 lbs butternut squash, peeled
• 1 1⁄4 lbs idaho potatoes, peeled (I used sweet potatoes)
• salt & freshly ground black pepper
• 6 tablespoons grated parmesan cheese
• 1 cup heavy cream (I used fat free half and half...but on a special occasion would use the cream!)
• 1⁄2 cup finely chopped walnuts
• 1⁄2 cup fresh breadcrumb, combined with
• 2 tablespoons melted butter

directions

1. Heat oven to 350°F.
2. Grease an 8x8 inch (2 quart) glass or ceramic baking dish.
3. Cut the squash in half lengthwise and scrape out the seeds and fibers.
4. Slice the squash and potatoes about 1/8 inch thick (use a mandoline if you have one).
5. Line the bottom of the baking dish with a layer of squash (overlapping slightly), season lightly with salt and pepper, sprinkle with a little of the Parmesan, and drizzle with a little of the cream.
6. Cover with a layer of potato slices, season with salt, pepper, cheese, and cream.
7. Repeat with the remaining squash and potatoes until the dish is full, ending with a top layer of squash, seasoned and topped with any remaining cheese and cream. (You may have extra squash, and extra potatoes if you used sweet potatoes!).
8. Press down lightly to distribute the cream and compact the layers.
9. The last layer of squash should be just sitting in the cream, but not covered by it.
10. Cover the dish with foil and bake until the vegetables feel tender when poked with a thin, sharp knife (check the middle layer), about 1 hour, 10 minutes.
11. Combine the walnuts and buttered bread crumbs.
12. Remove the gratin from the oven, sprinkle with the breadcrumb-nut mixture, and bake until the top is lightly browned, 5 to 10 minutes.
13. Let sit in a warm place for 20 minutes before serving so that liquids will set and tighten the gratin.
14. Cut into 9 squares and serve.

Reviews

[skinny marie]

Very nice side dish, great way to have squash! I also used sweet potatoes and the flavors were great. I don't like wlanuts, so I used pecans instead and the flavors blended well. I used too much half and half (I used fat free, too) so it was a little soupy, but the taste was great, will definitely make this again. -Cooking times were accurate, too. One tip, it helps to cut the potatoes and squash into smaller pieces great dish.