Recipe: Spring Gratin of Baby Vegetables (with cheese sauce)

SPRING GRATIN OF BABY VEGETABLES

FOR THE VEGETABLES:
8 to 10 baby carrots or 4 to 5 medium carrots, halved if large (1 pound)
4 to 5 baby turnips, halved or quartered depending on size (1 pound)
8 to 10 small white onions
3 to 4 small fennel bulbs, cut in 8 wedges (1 pound)
4 to 6 baby zucchini, thickly sliced (1 pound)
FOR THE SAUCE:
1/4 cup butter, plus more for greasing dish
1/4 cup flour
2 cups milk, more if needed
Salt and pepper
1 1/4 cups grated Gruyere or cheddar cheese
1 1/2 tablespoons smooth, mild, or hot Dijon mustard, more to taste

TO PREPARE THE VEGETABLES:
Put carrots in a pan of cold, salted water, cover, bring to a boil, and simmer until just tender, 8 to 10 minutes. Cook turnips in the same way, allowing 10 to 15 minutes, until just tender. Drain both vegetables and set aside.

Bring a pan of salted water to a boil, add the onions, and simmer them, uncovered, until just tender, 6 to 10 minutes. Lift them out with a slotted spoon, rinse with cold water, and leave to drain thoroughly. Use the same cooking water to cook the fennel and zucchini separately, allowing 5 to 8 minutes for fennel and 2 to 3 minutes for zucchini.

Butter a 1 1/2-quart gratin dish or 4 to 6 individual dishes. Combine vegetables and spread in the dish or dishes.

TO MAKE THE SAUCE:
Melt butter in a saucepan, whisk in the flour, and cook for a minute or two, until foaming. Pour in 2 cups milk and bring to a boil, whisking constantly until the sauce thickens. Season and simmer for 2 minutes.

Take sauce from heat and stir in half the cheese, until it melts. (Do not cook the sauce further or it will cook into strings.) Stir in mustard; taste and adjust seasonings. It's important not to overheat the mustard, as that turns it bitter. The sauce can be spicy or mild as you prefer; it should generously coat the back of a spoon but not be too thick. If necessary, add more milk.

Spoon the sauce over vegetables - they should be completely coated, but still show through a veil of sauce. Sprinkle remaining cheese on top.

TO FINISH:
Heat the broiler and set a rack 10 inches from the heat. Put the gratin on the rack and broil until browned and bubbling around the edges, 8 to 10 minutes for a large gratin or 6 to 8 inches for small ones.

Servings: 6 to 8 as a side dish
Adapted from source: Good Food, No Fuss by Anne Willan