7 hours ago
7
While sorting out some books the other day, as well as gathering a pile to give away or sell, I spent a large part of two hours looking for books I know I once had, and trying to remember if I had loaned or lost them. And then, in the case of one particular book, ordering another copy. Ten out, one in: not terrible.
The book I (re)ordered was Beaneaters and Bread Soup, by Lori de Mori and the photographer Jason Lowe. Gathered over decades of living just outside Florence, the book is a collection of wonderful, practical Tuscan recipes, and also tells a story of Tuscan food through portraits of photogenic local artisans: a chestnut grower, a bee keeper, a man who makes knives … I would mention more if I could find the book, which I suspect was borrowed and never returned – you know who you are! (Unless I have got this wrong and it is behind the bookcase.)
One recipe I don’t need to wait for, though, is Lori’s sformato, which I have been making on and off for years. The word sformato means something taken out of a form, and it’s an umbrella term used to describe a great number of bakes. Lori’s consists of a layer of well-seasoned spinach covered with a duvet of besciamella (bechamel) seasoned with parmesan, and it inspired this week’s recipe, which is another good example of how so much cooking is simply repetitive behaviour seasoned with fresh thoughts.
The fresh thoughts here are from a summer meal at a restaurant near Arezzo, where, as a vegetarian option, they baked leeks in individual terracotta dishes, poured over bechamel enriched with lots of cheese, then flashed the dishes under a grill. When I complimented the owner on the good idea, she mentioned that it works with spinach, too, and that you could also snuggle a few hard-boiled eggs into the vegetables for a more complete meal.
One thing to note about this dish is that you want to cut the leeks into long lengths, then arrange them in a buttered dish – the effect is a bit like a cluster of standing logs or tree stumps. The leeks are then roasted alone to begin with, until very tender, and then the hard-boiled egg are added. If the bechamel is freshly made, the whole thing will need only five or so minutes in a hot oven, or under a grill.
This is a dish that demands a salad, I think, with a vinegary dressing.
Baked leek and egg gratin
Serves 4 - 6
4 large leeks
6 eggs
50g butter, plus extra for greasing
Olive oil
50g plain flour
500ml whole milk
Salt and black pepper
Nutmeg, freshly grated, to taste
50g parmesan, or cheddar or gruyere
Trim the roots of the leeks, pull away and discard any damaged, tough or wayward leaves, then rinse the leeks in cold water as best you can without splitting them. Cut the leeks into 4cm-long logs and rinse again if any have dirt hidden in the exposed layers (again, make sure they don’t fall apart). Hard boil the eggs (I do this for eight minutes), then drain and peel.
Arrange the leeks like standing logs in a buttered, roughly 25cm baking dish, packing them in quite closely. Spoon over five tablespoons of olive oil and six teaspoons of water, then cover the dish with foil and bake at 200C (180C)/390F/gas 6 for 30 minutes. Lift off the foil and bake for another 10 minutes, by which time the leeks should be tender and just a little golden. Pull the dish from the oven and keep warm.
Melt the butter in a heavy-based pan, then, as soon as it starts to foam, whisk in the flour until it forms a paste and pull off the heat. Add a little of the milk, whisk to a smooth paste, then return the pan to the heat and add the remaining milk in a steady stream, whisking continuously, until it almost boils Season with salt, nutmeg and black pepper to taste, then lower the heat and simmer, stirring and whisking often, for about 10 minutes, until the sauce is thick enough to coat the back of a spoon. Stir in the cheese until melted and incorporated.
Cut the hard-boiled eggs in half, then nestle them in between the baked leeks. Pour the bechamel over the top, then finish in a hot oven or under the grill until the top bubbles.
