Love a bit of witlof. This bake is a real treat - and versatile when pairing with wine.

Ingredients

Serves 4 8 witlofs 4 slices of leg of ham 1 medium brown onion 2 garlic cloves 60g butter 100g grated gruyere Salt / pepper Caster sugar 1 L of Béchamel (see recipe) Béchamel Sauce 60g butter 60g flour 1L milk Salt/pepper Grated nutmeg

Method

1. Take out the first leaves of the endives. Chop finely those leaves. 2. Peel and chop finely the onion, peel and crush the garlic. 3. In a large casserole, melt 60gr of butter. Season the endives with salt/pepper/caster sugar. Brown lightly the endives on each side over a medium heat. Add the onion, garlic, the chopped endives leaves and chicken stock. Bring to boil, cover with a lid and simmer over a very low heat for 30 min. 4. When the endives are cooked, remove them from the broth on some towel paper to take out as much water as possible. 5. Prepare the béchamel according to recipe on pg, mix in half of the grated cheese to the béchamel sauce. 6. Roll each endive into each slice of ham and put them into a oven dish. Pour on top of it the sauce, spread the remaining grated cheese and place in oven at 180oc for approx 20 mins or until the top become’s golden brown. Béchamel Sauce 1. In a medium saucepan melt the butter under a slow heat, then add the flour and stir the mixture for 2 min with a whisk. Let it cool down before using it. This mixture is called a “Roux”. 2. Bring the milk to boil together with the salt/pepper and a pinch of grated nutmeg; and then pour it over the cold roux. Whisk the mixture until it’s lump-free and cook it for 10 min. you might have to pass it through a strainer to remove the remaining lumps.