Is it possible to eat healthily at a lower cost while having fun? “Of course”, Laurent Mariotte will answer! In terms of cooking, the journalist always has good ideas and the latest is his leek and ham gratin. This recipe ticks absolutely all the boxes for the perfect dish: balanced, tasty, cheap and easy to make. And all that for less than €2 per person ! Whether it’s for Monday evening dinner with the children or for Sunday lunch with friends, it’s a good idea that will always be unanimous. Now for the big kitchen.
Laurent Mariotte’s easy leek and ham gratin recipe for less than €2 per person
It’s leek season. Enhance this vegetable by serving it with slices of ham and a delicious béchamel, as Laurent Mariotte does on his Instagram account.
The ingredients for 4 people :
- 6 slices of white ham
- 3 large leeks
- 10 g of coarse salt for 1 liter of water
- 20 g of butter for the dish
- 100 g grated Comté cheese
For the béchamel sauce:
- 40g butter
- 40 g of flour
- 50 cl of milk
- 1 pinch of ground nutmeg
- Salt and pepper from the mill
The steps of the recipe:
- Slice each leek white into two sections. Reserve the green for another use (like a soup). Immerse the breasts in boiling salted water for 15 minutes, then drain and wrap each section with a slice of ham.
- In a small saucepan, then melt the butter with the flour and stir. Pour in the milk, whisking constantly, then add salt, pepper and nutmeg. Thicken by mixing for 4 to 5 minutes.
- Butter a gratin dish, pour two thirds of the béchamel into the bottom. Then place the leeks and cover with béchamel. Sprinkle with Comté and bake for 15 minutes at 200°C. Good tasting.
How to cook leeks?
Leeks can be cooked in various recipes. We use both the white and the green of this vegetable. So choose your leeks, taking care to look at the foliage and the white. They should be smooth, shiny and without stains.
To eat it, cut the rootlets (you can fry them) from the leek and keep only 4 cm of the green. You can then blanch it for 10 minutes in boiling water.. To prepare it, cut the white of the leek lengthwise then into pieces. And for the foliage, cut it directly into pieces. It is possible to cook the leeks in water, in a pan, by steam or in the oven depending on the recipe.
Read also :
⋙ Moules fries marinières: the traditional and extremely simple recipe by Laurent Mariotte
⋙ Donuts: Laurent Mariotte’s quick recipe and its secret ingredient
⋙ Pork colombo: the ultra colorful and delicious recipe from Laurent Mariotte