It is Fennel Friday and I have something seriously delicious to share with you … it involves fennel, apples, gruyere and panko …. does life really get better than that?
Fennel bulbs are sometimes called sweet anise for their more herbaceous light notes and I have to agree – this is not your Grandmom’s Fennel recipe.
Smooth, creamy and a wonderful blend of ingredients equals a beautiful side dish for a pork, fish or beef dinner OR as I ate it, for lunch with the girls with a salad on the side! It also tastes really good straight from the casserole!
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| Fennel & Apple Gratin |
Recipe Type: Side
Author:
Prep time: 15 mins
Cook time: 45 mins
Total time: 1 hour
Serves: 4-6
Gratins give us tons of versatility – the fennel and apple combo is perfect for a winter day full of comfort food!
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons butter
- 1 small onion, thinly sliced
- 1 large fennel bulb, thinly sliced
- 2 apples, thinly sliced
- 1/2 cup of heavy cream (or half & half)
- 1 tablespoon of fennel pollen
- 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
- pinch of salt (to taste – may need more)
- 1.5 cups Panko breadcrumbs
- 1 cup gruyere cheese, grated
- 1 tablespoon fennel fronds, chopped
- 1 tablespoon tarragon (fresh), chopped
- 2 tablespoons of melted butter
Instructions
- Melt butter in a large skillet over medium heat.
- Add onions and fennel and cook for about 5 minutes, stirring occasionally.
- Sprinkle about half of fennel pollen over onions and fennel.
- Lower the heat slightly and cover and cook for another five minutes.
- Add apples, stir, and cook until fennel and apples are getting soft – 5 to 8 min.
- Butter the bottom and sides of baking dish.
- Add the fennel-apple mixture to the baking dish.
- In a bowl, combine cream, fennel pollen, cayenne, and salt.
- Pour into the baking dish over the fennel-apple mixture.
- In another bowl, combine breadcrumbs, Gruyere, tarragon and fennel fronds.
- Pour the 2 TB of melted butter over and mix well until the breadcrumbs are moistened uniformly throughout.
- Cover the fennel-apple mixture with the breadcrumb mixture.
- Bake on 350 degrees for about 20 minutes or until lightly browned on top and mixture is bubbling.
I want to try this! I’m always hesitant using fennel, but trust your comment that it’s “not my grandmother’s fennel!”
Thanks!
Hi Patricia!
I have been simply shocked to find out how much fun and how tasty increasing my fennel intake has been! Let me know how it comes out!