Page title and description
Meat mains
Swede, leek and bacon gratin
Cook's notes
Try topping the gratin with a hard grating cheese such as Parmesan, Cheddar, pecorino or Gruyère and return to the oven for the last 10 minutes.Ingredients
- 100ml milk
- 500ml double cream
- 2 garlic cloves
- 1 large rosemary or thyme sprig
- 150g smoked streaky bacon, cut into lardons
- 1–2 tbsp olive oil
- 3 leeks, white and pale green parts cut in rings
- knob of butter (about 30g), plus extra to grease the gratin dish
- 1 swede, peeled and sliced paper thin (use a mandolin if you have one)
- salt and black pepper
Method
Prep time:
10 min
PT10M
Cooking time:
1h
30 min
PT1H30M
-
Step 1
Heat the oven to 170°C/Gas 3. -
Step 2
Put the milk, cream, garlic and rosemary or thyme in a pan over a low–medium heat. Slowly bring to a boil and then gently simmer for 5 minutes, being careful not to let it boil over. Season with salt and pepper and remove from the heat. -
Step 3
Fry the bacon in the oil in a frying pan over a medium heat until really crispy. -
Step 4
Add the leeks and a knob of butter and cook on a low heat for 20–30 minutes, until the leeks are soft and just beginning to caramelise. Season well with salt and pepper. -
Step 5
Arrange half the sliced swede on the bottom of a greased gratin or shallow ovenproof dish and season. Add the sautéed leeks and then top with the remaining swede and season again. Press the layers down with the back of a spoon. -
Step 6
Using a sieve, strain over the infused milk and cream mixture and cover the dish with foil. -
Step 7
Bake in the oven for about 1 hour, until a blunt knife can be easily inserted through to the bottom. -
Step 8
Uncover and bake for 15 minutes until the gratin is golden around the edges. Leave to stand for 10 minutes before serving.