Courgette, tomato and roasted red pepper gratin and baby talk

My sister-in-law and I talk about my baby nephew a lot, and we always talk about the food he’ll eat when he grows up – my brother is the pickiest eater I know and we know that he’ll have to change in order to become a good example for the boy.

I tell her to calm down because my husband used to be just like that and now he tries lots of different types of food (I guess we’ll have to organize a trip to China for my brother as well). :D

For instance, my husband always tells me how much he hated gratins as a kid, especially the potato gratin his mother made constantly back in the day. He also hated courgettes. Just so you know, he ate the gratin in the picture like crazy and told me that I can make that dish whenever I want because “it is so delicious”.

People change, thank heavens. There’s still hope for my brother. :D

Courgette, tomato and roasted red pepper gratin
slightly adapted from the always delicious Olive magazine

1 small red pepper
2 tablespoons olive oil, divided use
½ large onion, finely diced
2 large garlic cloves, minced
1 x 400g (14oz) can peeled tomatoes
1 teaspoon sugar
salt and freshly ground black pepper
handful of fresh basil leaves
350g large courgettes, halved in the widest part, cut into 5mm slices
75g coarsely grated cheddar salt and freshly ground black pepper

Preheat the oven to 220°C/420°F. Put the red pepper on a baking tray and roast in the oven for about 30 minutes, turning it once or twice, until the skins are blackened in places and the flesh is soft. Transfer to a heatproof bowl, seal with plastic wrap and leave to cool. Break the pepper open, discard the stalk and seeds, peel off the skin and slice the flesh into thin strips.

While that goes on, make the tomato sauce: in a medium saucepan, heat 1 tablespoon of the olive oil over medium-high heat. Add the onions and cook until translucent. Add the garlic, cook for 1-2 minutes, then add the tomatoes and the sugar. Fill 1/3 of the can with water, swirl it around and add to the saucepan. Season with salt and pepper, break the tomatoes with a wooden spoon then cook over medium heat, stirring occasionally, for about 20 minutes or until slightly thickened. Add the basil, stir to combine, cover and remove from the heat.

Heat a large, ridged griddle until smoking hot, then lower the heat slightly. Toss the courgette slices in the other tablespoon of oil, season with salt and pepper, then griddle in batches for 2 minutes on each side until marked with dark lines. Set aside on kitchen paper to drain.

Spread half the sauce over a medium, shallow baking dish. Scatter half the griddled courgettes over the tomato sauce, followed by half the red pepper strips and half the grated cheese. Spoon over the remaining tomato then repeat the layers once more, ending with the grated cheese. Bake for 25-30 minutes until lightly golden and bubbling.

Serves 2 generously