If your first thought is to serve this dish as a side, think again. Featuring a layer of sourdough bread and topped with thyme crumbs, this hearty vegetable tian will no doubt keep you satisfied as a main. Make with any of your favourite vegetables, top with basil and breadcrumbs, and enjoy.
Vegetable tian with thyme crumb
The beauty of this dish is in its versatility - use any seasonal vegetable to satisfy your own tastes.
- 30 mins preparation
- 50 mins cooking
- Serves 4 - 6
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Ingredients
- 1 garlic clove, halved
- 6 slices sourdough bread
- 2 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
- 260 gm Bolognese sauce
- 4 eggplant (about 1.4kg), cut into 5 mm-thick slices
- 3 large vine-ripened tomatoes, cut into 5 mm-thick slices
- 3 large zucchini, cut on an angle into 5mm-thick slices
- 3 Desiree potatoes, cut into 5mm-thick slices
- 25 gm each finely grated parmesan and Gruyère
- ½ cup firmly packed basil leaves
Method
- 1Preheat oven to 220˚C. Grease a 22cm x 28cm ovenproof dish. Lay 4 slices of sourdough over base and rub with garlic. Top with Bolognese sauce.
- 2Place eggplant, tomato, zucchini and potato, alternating upright in dish. Repeat with remaining vegetables in two rows. Season to taste, drizzle with oil and bake until vegetables are tender (45-50 minutes).
- 3Meanwhile, remove crust from remaining bread and roughly tear. Toss with cheeses and place on a small baking tray lined with non stick baking paper. Bake until cheese is melted and bread golden (5 minutes).
- 4Serve warm or at room temperature, scattered with crumb, basil leaves and pepper.
Notes
Tian is a French term for a shallow, earthenware dish, as well as the food that is cooked in it. Usually, it's a gratin (a baked dish with a crisp breadcrumb topping) of mixed vegetables.