Around the World in Foodventures (Belgium: CHICON AU GRATIN)

Although Belgium has been next on the list for a while, I'd been putting this foodventure off because (pandemic/avoiding the general public/minimizing store trips) I didn't think finding Belgian endives would be so easy.  But we were out for a drive the other evening just to get out of the house, and decided to take a chance and swing by that store where an Internet billionaire overcharges for food.  I figured if anyone was going to have fancy leafy things, it'd be them; and it turns out Belgian is the only kind of endive they carry (no purple stuff in sight).  So we were off and running, and over $20 later for absolute minimal amounts of the four non-pantry-staple ingredients that we didn't already have at home (like really, you guys, we bought just 2 endives, a quarter pound of cheese, 2 measly ounces of prosciutto -- not even made in Italy -- marked @ ~$80/pound!, and some fresh parsley), I was ready to go.

But I digress 😛 ....

My non-literal (obviously 😉) translation of "Chicon Au Gratin" is "ham and cheesy fancy leafy" -- and that's pretty much what it is...cooked endives wrapped in ham and topped with a Mornay sauce, more cheese, and green stuff.  I read that it's traditionally served with mashed potatoes, and since I had a sweet potato lying around, I went with that:

It was pretty easy to make, and didn't take too much time.  Here is the recipe I followed: https://www.allrecipes.com/recipe/149844/belgian-endive-au-gratin/.  I used prosciutto, because (1) that's pretty much the only kind of sliced "deli" ham product Whale Foods --as we like to jokingly refer to it-- sells and (2) if you're gonna be indulgent, go all the way, right?

My only comment on this particular iteration of the dish is that I feel it would be better to roast the endives during the pre-cooking process rather than boil them.  I think that would develop some flavor and texture, and definitely would have them coming out less water-logged in the end.  Other than that, it's all good and delicious.

This post is part of my project: "Around the World in Foodventures" (I decided I want to expand my culinary horizons even further by making the national dish or a popular recipe, or some signature food or traditional meal from every country in the world. Maybe it'll happen alphabetically, or by region, in random order, or something else. I figure if we can't (yet?) travel everywhere, we at least have the luxury of being able to taste it. It’ll be fun and interesting, but obviously, will take a long time to get through -- as I'll only be doing it once a week or so at most. I am chronicling the journey here.)

“If I’m an advocate of anything, it’s to move…Walk in someone else’s shoes or at least eat their food.” --Tony Bourdain