• Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
The Little Ferraro Kitchen logo
menu icon
go to homepage
  • About
  • Cookbook
  • Shop
  • Recipe Index
  • Contact
    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • Pinterest
    • Twitter
    • YouTube
  • search icon
    Homepage link
    • About
    • Cookbook
    • Shop
    • Recipe Index
    • Contact
    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • Pinterest
    • Twitter
    • YouTube
  • ×

    Home » Recipes » Dinner Recipes

    Zucchini Gratin and Menu Planning

    Published: Aug 24, 2012 · Modified: Oct 12, 2022 by Samantha Ferraro · This post may contain affiliate links · 2 Comments

    Jump to Recipe Print Recipe

    Well here we are, the last Friday of my summer. Geez did this go by fast! I have so many things I need to figure out. Joe mentioned “menu planning” yesterday and I thought that was such a fabulous idea. We have a bad habit of going to the store almost every day and making whatever the Food Network tells us to, our freezer is either overflowing or something goes bad.

    So there I go shuffling through all the frozen protein we have stocked away in the freezer. I figured we should make a menu of things we have on hand, obviously and go from there. Well..it barely made a dent.

    Here’s what I came up with for the week:

    1) Yogurt marinated chicken with curry and garlic and side of arugula salad (that neighbors just gave us…perfect!)

    2) Pasta with tomatoes and scallops.

    3) Grilled Pizza with Zucchini. Can you believe we have more zucchini! I’m thinking of ways to use them up!

    4) Veal Picatta with sauteed zucchini.

    5) Crock Pot Mexi-Style Chicken: This will end up on Monday, Joe will be working all day and I will be at school…so I am dusting off the crock pot!

    6) Leftover chicken: make into enchiladas or bowls, etc.

    So this is as far as I’ve gotten. How does this look? And I barely dented our fridge let alone our cubbards! And now that school is starting I have a LOT more planning to do. New schedules, school lunches, workouts and of course blogging.

    Now let’s get back to why we’re all here….food! I have probably just made something perfectly healthy into something so incredibly indulgent. And I’m OK with that. Zucchini gratin is what’s going on today, the last of that huge 4lb zucchini I was talking about earlier.

    The funny thing is I was going to give a batch to my wonderful neighbors who gifted us with the gourd, but being my klutzy self..I left the leftovers out overnight and had to chuck it in the garbage. I shed a tear.

    However, the few servings I did manage to serve up for dinner were succulent. Rich but not heavy and earthy from the zucchini. I liked the combined textures of the crunchy topping with the gooey cheese. I will be making this again.

    Method:

    1) Pre-heat oven to 400 degrees. In a large saute pan, melt butter and onions over low heat for about 20 minutes until tender but not browned. Add zucchini and cook, covered for another 10 minutes or so, until tender. Add salt, pepper, nutmeg and cook uncovered for a few more minutes to evaporate liquid.

    2) Add flour and stir to coat. Add hot milk and cook over low heat for a few minutes until it gets a little thicker. Pour mixture into a baking dish.

    3) In a separate bowl, combine bread crumbs and Gruyere cheese and sprinkle on top of zucchini mixture. Top with small dots of butter. Bake for 20 minutes or until brown and bubbly.

    Zucchini Gratin and Menu Planning

    Samantha Ferraro
    Recipe inspired by Ina Garten
    5 from 1 vote
    Print Recipe Pin Recipe
    Servings 4 servings
    Calories 367 kcal

    Ingredients
     
     

    • 6 tablespoons 3/4 stick unsalted butter, + extra for topping
    • 1/2 onion sliced
    • 2 pounds zucchini sliced thin
    • 1/4 tsp ground nutmeg
    • 2 Tb flour
    • 1 cup hot milk
    • 1/2 cup fresh bread crumbs
    • 1/2 cup grated Gruyere
    • Salt and pepper to taste

    Instructions
     

    • Pre-heat oven to 400 degrees. In a large saute pan, melt butter and onions over low heat for about 20 minutes until tender but not browned. Add zucchini and cook, covered for another 10 minutes or so, until tender. Add salt, pepper, nutmeg and cook uncovered for a few more minutes to evaporate liquid.
    • Add flour and stir to coat. Add hot milk and cook over low heat for a few minutes until it gets a little thicker. Pour mixture into a baking dish.
    • In a separate bowl, combine bread crumbs and Gruyere cheese and sprinkle on top of zucchini mixture. Top with small dots of butter. Bake for 20 minutes or until brown and bubbly.

    Nutrition

    Calories: 367kcalCarbohydrates: 24gProtein: 12gFat: 26gSaturated Fat: 15gPolyunsaturated Fat: 1gMonounsaturated Fat: 7gTrans Fat: 1gCholesterol: 71mgSodium: 261mgPotassium: 753mgFiber: 3gSugar: 10gVitamin A: 1234IUVitamin C: 42mgCalcium: 312mgIron: 2mg
    Tried this recipe?Let us know on Instagram!

    More Dinner Recipes

    • Greek Rice Pilaf with Orzo
    • Four Cheese Gnocchi Al Forno with Sausage
    • Turkish Red Lentil Soup with Mint and Lemon (Mercimek Çorbasi)
    • Hawaiian Style Shoyu Chicken

    Sharing is caring!

    • Facebook
    • Twitter
    • Email
    • Print

    Weeknight Mediterranean Shopping List

    Subscribe to get the Mediterranean shopping list and to be the 1st to get brand new recipes!

    Reader Interactions

    Comments

    1. Miriam @ Overtime Cook says

      August 24, 2012 at 4:02 pm

      I need to try menu planning- it would save me so much money and time!

      Reply
    2. Camilla @Fabfood4all says

      August 28, 2012 at 1:47 am

      Your Gratin looks delicious and you have inspired me to make it as we all love courgettes in our house!

      Reply

    Leave a Reply Cancel reply

    Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

    Recipe Rating




    This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

    Primary Sidebar

    Hi, I'm Samantha! I started this blog for my love of world cuisine and cultural flavors! You’ll find everything here from Jewish recipes, Middle Eastern, Italian and more!

    More about me →

    Baking Recipes

    • Cherry Pistachio Rugelach
    • Spinach and Potato Knish with Caramelized Onions
    • Salted Caramel Eclairs
    • Spiced Pumpkin Souffle

    Order My Cookbook!

    Buy This Book Online
    Buy from Amazon
    Buy from Amazon Kindle
    Buy from Barnes and Noble
    Buy from IndieBound
    The Weeknight Mediterranean Kitchen
    Buy now!

    Footer

    ↑ back to top

    About

    • Privacy Policy

    Newsletter

    • Sign Up! for emails and updates

    Contact

    • Contact

    As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

    Copyright © 2023 · Samantha Ferraro · Little Ferraro Kitchen · All Rights Reserved