Dinner Party: Corn and Tomato Gratin

My dinner party guests for September 12 were Natasha and Donna. Natasha is a vegetarian, so I needed to figure out a satisfying menu that would not rely on meat. While it required a little more digging, I think everyone was satisfied with the results.

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Corn and Tomato Gratin

Ingredients:

• 1 1/2 lb red or yellow tomatoes (4 medium), cut crosswise into 1/2-inch-thick slices
• 2 teaspoons salt
• 1 teaspoon black pepper
• 4 cups fresh corn kernels (from 6 to 8 ears)
• 1 cup whole milk
• 1/2 cup heavy cream
• 2 cups fresh bread crumbs (preferably from a day-old baguette; an 8-inch piece, including crust)
• 1/2 cup chopped fresh basil
• 1 oz finely grated parmesan (1/2 cup)
• 3/4 stick (6 tablespoons) unsalted butter, cut into small pieces, plus additional for buttering pan

Instructions:
Arrange tomato slices in 1 layer on a rack set in a shallow baking pan and sprinkle on both sides with 1 teaspoon salt and 1/2 teaspoon pepper. Let drain 30 minutes.

While tomatoes drain, bring corn, milk, cream, and 1/4 teaspoon salt to a simmer in a 2- to 3-quart heavy saucepan over high heat, then reduce heat and simmer, partially covered, until corn is tender, about 5 minutes. Cool slightly, uncovered.

Put oven rack in upper third of oven and preheat oven to 375°F. Butter a shallow 2-quart baking dish.

Toss together bread crumbs, basil, cheese, and remaining 3/4 teaspoon salt and 1/2 teaspoon pepper in another bowl.

Arrange one third of tomato slices in baking dish, then cover evenly with one third of bread-crumb mixture and dot with one third of butter. Spoon half of corn mixture over crumbs, then repeat layering with half of remaining tomatoes, crumbs, and butter, and all of corn. Arrange remaining tomatoes over corn, then top with remaining bread crumbs and dot with remaining butter.

Bake, uncovered, until top is golden and gratin is bubbling all over, 40 to 45 minutes. Cool slightly on a rack, about 15 minutes, before serving.

Notes:
I wish I had taken a closer look at the recipe before working on it. Even though I had taken some preparations ahead of time by preparing the corn and chopping the tomatoes and basil, there were some steps that I hadn't anticipated, and which I had to improvise, like letting the tomatoes drain before putting all the ingredients together.

I purchased bread crumbs rather than turning a baguette into crumbs as suggested by the recipe, mostly because it seemed like a sane way to cut corners.

This recipe was a big hit with Natasha and Donna, who found it very flavorful. I think it would be a nice thing to contribute to a Thanksgiving dinner or a potluck.

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Spinach and Mushrooms with Truffle Oil

Ingredients:

• 2 tablespoons (1/4 stick) butter
• 10 ounces button mushrooms or crimini (baby bella) mushrooms, sliced
• 1 large shallot, chopped
• 1 1/2 9-ounce bags fresh spinach leaves
• 1 to 2 teaspoons truffle oil

Instructions:
Melt butter in large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add mushrooms; sauté until brown and liquid evaporates, about 8 minutes. Add shallot; sauté 2 minutes.

Add spinach, 1/3 at a time, to skillet with mushrooms and toss over medium-high heat, allowing each batch to wilt slightly before adding next, about 2 minutes per batch. Sauté just until all spinach is wilted and heated through. Stir in 1 teaspoon truffle oil. Season with salt, pepper, and more truffle oil, if desired. Transfer to bowl and serve.

Notes:
"Truffle oil" is actually an olive oil or grape seed oil infused with truffles (or aromas found in truffles); because I didn't know this at first, I got a little tripped up when I was shopping and seemed to be having trouble finding "authentic" truffle oil.

The recipe was fairly straightforward. It is always a bit shocking to see how much spinach leaves will shrink when they wilt.

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Blueberry Ice Cream 

Ingredients:

• 4 cups picked over blueberries
• 1 cup sugar
• The zest of 1 navel orange, removed in strips with a vegetable peeler
• 2 tablespoons Grand Marnier, or other orange-flavored liqueur
• 3 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla
• 1/8 teaspoon salt
• 2 cups heavy cream
• 1 cup half-and-half

Instructions:
In a large saucepan combine the blueberries, the sugar, the zest, and 1/4 cup water, boil the mixture, covered, for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally, and simmer it, uncovered, for 5 minutes. Discard the zest and purée the mixture in batches in a blender or food processor. Transfer the purée to a bowl and whisk in the Grand Marnier, the lemon juice, the vanilla, the salt, the heavy cream, and the half-and-half. Force the mixture through a very fine sieve set over another bowl and chill it, covered, for 1 hour, or until it is cold. Freeze the mixture in an ice-cream freezer according to the manufacturer's instructions.

Notes:
I added a few egg yolks to the recipe in order to make it more like other ice creams. However, this ice cream ended up a little bit hard (but still tasty), and I wonder whether the egg yolks might have contributed to that, so I might not include them if I tried to recreate the recipe.

I don't think I quite knew how to handle the blueberries, and, if I made this again, I would probably figure out how I needed to process them beforehand. I might even want to switch to frozen, rather than fresh, berries, because it would cut down on expenses and the berries are going to end up frozen anyway.

The orange zest and the orange liqueur (Cointreau) really added a nice flavor to the ice cream.