Strata: A Savory Custard
This vegetable custard calls for the same ingredients as the individual timbales that I learned to make as a youngster from my aunt Marian in Vermont and have relished ever since. It’s a good way to use up yesterday’s baguette and a leftover vegetable, to say nothing of that fallback ingredient, a piece of ham. Here I put everything into a 1 1/2 cup ceramic baking dish that has a 4 1/2-inch diameter and it fills the dish, coming out of the oven puffy and lightly tanned. It’s easier than having to unmold the individual timbales, and, of course, I eat it right from the dish as soon as it has cooled long enough not to burn my tongue.
Ingredients
Preparation
Step 1
Put the bread in a bowl with the milk to soak for about 5 minutes, and then squeeze it through your fingers to dissolve the crumbs in the milk. Meanwhile, place the ham on the bottom of a single-portion buttered baking dish and lay the asparagus spears, cut in half, over the ham. Salt lightly. Beat the egg with the milk-cream mixture, add a little salt and freshly ground pepper, and pour that over the asparagus. Arrange optional sage leaves on top and sprinkle on the grated cheese. Bake in a preheated 350° oven for 25 minutes. Let settle for a few minutes out of the oven before you dive in.
Variations
Step 2
You can use any number of cooked vegetables as a base here, whatever you may have lurking in the refrigerator—some broccoli (or broccolini) florets, rated zucchini, artichoke hearts, or braised fennel. If you use a leafy vegetable like spinach or chard, squeeze out all the water first.
