Ham and Endive Gratin

Ham and Endive Gratin was a common and very popular dish in our household during the winter months. Endives are plentiful in France and much easier to find than in the US so it was a warm and inexpensive mouth-pleaser! The challenges you will have making this dish in the US are finding endives of a decent size and good cooked ham. The ham used in France is called "jambon torchon"  - literally "dishtowel ham" because it's boiled while wrapped in a dish towel. In the US, this is usually called "boiled ham" and comes in, to be honest, rather unappetizing packages. Applegate Farms makes a pretty good uncured boiled ham although the slices are thin so you'll need to double them up. Your local deli might have a better selection. Our family served this without a sauce but I've seen it described frequently with a bechemel so I'm including that option here!




Ingredients - Serves 4

• 8 large endives (you can put two small ones together if necessary), cored
• 8 slices of boiled ham
• 8 oz of shredded swiss cheese

Optional Bechemel (white sauce)

• 2 tbl of unsalted butter
• 2 tbl of flour
• 1 cup of milk
• 1 cup of reserved endive cooking liquid.

Directions

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

Heat a large pot of salted water to boiling. Add the endives and cook for 15 minutes. Lay the sliced ham out on a board. Drain the endives (reserving a cup of the cooking liquid if making a bechemel).

Melt the butter in a small saucepan. Once the butter stops foaming, add the flour and whisk to combine. Let the flour cook until it's a dark golden color. Add the milk and endive cooking liquid in small batches and whisk between each addition to keep lumps from forming. The mixture will be fairly loose. Continue simmering and whisking occasionally for about 8-10 minutes until the sauce thickens. Season with salt and pepper.

Lay an endive in the middle of each slice of ham and roll it up, placing it in a casserole dish. If using a bechemel, pour over the 8 rolls. Cover the ham/endive rolls with the shredded swiss cheese and place in the oven for 30 minutes. Turn the oven to broil for an additional 4 minutes to brown the cheese.

Serve with crusty bread. The ham/endive rolls are hot and the middle retains the heat for some time! Take small bites to avoid burns!