Chicory Witlof With Gruyere And Ham Recipes

Steps:

• Special Equipment: Steaming basket
• Serving Suggestion: French baguette, sliced
• Preheat oven to 350 to 375 degrees F.
• In a large pot fitted with a steaming basket, bring 1-inch of water to a boil. Place the endives in the basket, cover, and let cook until very soft, about 10 to 15 minutes. Transfer to a colander and let drain, pushing down on the endives with a clean kitchen towel until as much of the water as possible has been expelled. Do not mush the endives!
• In a large frying pan over medium-high heat, melt 2 tablespoons of the butter. When the foam has subsided, add the endives and cook, turning occasionally, until brown and caramelized on all surfaces. Remove from heat and wrap each endive in 1 slice of the ham. Set aside.
• In a small saucepan over medium heat, melt the remaining 2 tablespoons of butter. When the foam has subsided whisk in the flour and cook 1 minute, being careful not to brown the flour. Whisk in the milk in a slow, steady stream. Bring to a boil whisking constantly, then reduce heat to medium-low and simmer until thickened, about 8 minutes. Season with a generous amount of pepper and the nutmeg.
• Spread about 1 cup of the sauce over the bottom of a 9 by 13-inch flameproof ceramic baking dish, then arrange the ham-wrapped endives on top in a single layer. Cover with the remaining sauce and the cheese. Bake until the cheese is melted and the sauce is bubbling, about 30 minutes. Turn on the broiler, transfer the pan to the top rack, and broil until the cheese has patches of golden goodness - about 2 minutes. Serve hot with generous amounts of sauce and baguette slices.

Steps:

• To cook the endive, combine the butter, sugar, salt, and 10 1/2 cups water in a large pot. Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat to maintain a steady simmer. Add the endive, cover, and cook until very tender, about 45 minutes. A knife should be able to pierce through with no resistance. Use a slotted spoon to transfer the endive to paper towels. Reserve 1 1/4 cups cooking liquid. When cool enough to handle, squeeze out as much liquid as possible from the endive.
• Wrap each endive with slices of ham. Arrange the endive in a shallow baking dish that holds them snugly; you don't want any space between the endive.
• Preheat the oven to 400°F.
• To make the béchamel, melt the butter in a medium saucepan over medium-low heat until golden. Add the flour and cook, whisking constantly, until the mixture smells nutty, about 2 minutes. Continue whisking and add the milk, then the reserved endive cooking liquid in a slow, steady stream. Bring the mixture to a boil while whisking. Continue whisking until thickened, about 5 minutes. Whisk in the nutmeg and pepper.
• Pour the béchamel over the endive and spread to cover them evenly. Sprinkle the cheese evenly over the top. Set the dish on a rimmed baking sheet and bake until bubbly and golden brown on top, about 15 minutes. If you want the top more browned and crusty, broil for a minute or two after baking. Serve hot.

Steps:

• Clean chicory heads, remove outer leaves and cut off about 1 cm from the thick end of the chicory.
• Fill a large pot with water and add lemon, butter and salt, add chicory and boil for about 20-30 minutes or until tender (cooking time depends on the size of the chicories) Once cooked, drain really well (or all the excess water will leak out later and make your cheese sauce very very thin).
• Take 2 slices of ham and arrange them slightly overlapping on a cutting board, using tongs, place a chicory in the middle, sprinkle a small amount of the grated gruyere on and roll it up. (when I make this as a main course I personally use 3 slices of ham for each chicory, but that's just personal preference).
• Place the ham rolled chicory in an ovenproof dish.
• To make the cheese sauce:.
• Melt the butter in a saucepan, take off the heat and add the flour, using a whisk to blend it into a smooth paste with the cream and then add the milk, nutmeg, salt and pepper.
• Return the sauce to the heat to cook and thicken, whisking constantly. Don't worry if it looks overly thick, no matter how much water you get out of the chicory there will still be some left in there somewhere to make your sauce a little bit thinner.
• Lastly, add the rest of the grated Gruyere to the sauce (and Sbrinz cheese if you are using that too) stir, and then pour the sauce over the ham rolled chicorys.
• Put into a preheated oven at 220 C (425 F) for 10-20 minutes and serve hot.
• Serve with any pasta type that will coat with the sauce well.
• NOTE: I sometimes replace the cream with a soya product that we have here called "soya cusine" if you are watching your intake of dairy products, cholesterol etc then this is a healthier option and doesn't effect the taste of the dish at all.

Steps:

• For the mashed potatoes: In a Dutch oven or heavy-bottomed pot, add the potatoes, garlic, sea salt and 1 quart cold water. Bring to a boil, then reduce to a simmer and cook until the potatoes are tender, 20 to 25 minutes. Discard all but 1/2 cup water. Transfer the potatoes and garlic to a bowl. Add the cream and butter and use an immersion blender to create a mash; don't overblend. Season with kosher salt and pepper.
• For the pierogies: Mix 1 cup of the prepared mashed potatoes with the ham, Gruyere, 2 tablespoons butter and the chives. (Reserve any remaining mashed potatoes for another use.)
• Add the flour, egg, 1 tablespoon butter, sour cream, kosher salt and 1 cup cold water to a food processor. Mix the dough gently until it turns into a ball and let rest 1 hour or up to overnight in the refrigerator.
• Remove the dough from the refrigerator and roll out the dough to 1/8-inch thick. Cut out 3-inch rounds. Brush the dough with a bit of water, then add 2 teaspoons potato-ham mixture. Fold the dough in half and seal the edges with a fork. Repeat with the remaining dough and filling.
• Fill a high-sided saute pan with salted water and bring to a simmer. Add the pierogies and gently simmer the pierogies for 2 minutes, drain and dry. Add the remaining 2 tablespoons butter plus the olive oil to a large cast-iron skillet and heat over medium-high heat. Once the butter has melted, add the pierogies and cook until golden on both sides, about 5 minutes total. Remove and drain on a paper towel-lined plate. Serve with sour cream on the side.