Should we call them fennel casserole or do we prefer baked gratinated fennel with cooked ham and homemade bechamel? Honestly, I don’t know which to choose, as many recipes are called casseroles while others are labeled as gratinated.
So it’s up to you, but you must try this easy and quick recipe! I’ll let you in on a secret, my father might even call it a fennel gateau or even a baked fennel pie. This is because he knows few culinary terms and when he doesn’t know the name, he either substitutes or invents, leading to hearty laughs for me and his partner.
I will also explain how to prepare homemade bechamel using Grandma Licia’s recipe, following easy and practical steps to prepare this creamy sauce to use in making baked gratinated fennel. Adding emmentaler cheese will give even more flavor to this fennel casserole, and a generous sprinkle of grated cheese for that beloved delicious and crispy crust!
I don’t know if you know, but until a few years ago I didn’t like fennel at all, then I learned to eat them and especially to cook them! From this small beginning with this new ingredient for me, many recipes were born that I then shared with you over the years, you can find them all below. Each link will take you directly to the recipe you have chosen to read, from the sweet and sour fennel baked in the oven to the baked gratinated fennel with breadcrumbs.
The fennel season starts in autumn and ends with spring, after which in summer they become rather woody. An economical ingredient, easy and quick to clean and use for making our recipes.
Before moving on to the recipe I would like to remind you that I am waiting for you every morning in the Facebook group and fan page of Le Ricette di Bea with the Recipe of the Day! The day’s must-see appointment to start it together with you!
- Difficulty: Very easy
- Cost: Very economical
- Preparation time: 10 Minutes
- Portions: 4 People
- Cooking methods: Oven
- Cuisine: Italian
- Seasonality: Autumn, Winter, and Spring
- Energy 584.68 (Kcal)
- Carbohydrates 26.54 (g) of which sugars 11.56 (g)
- Proteins 29.37 (g)
- Fat 40.03 (g) of which saturated 19.53 (g)of which unsaturated 11.64 (g)
- Fibers 3.91 (g)
- Sodium 1,171.35 (mg)
Indicative values for a portion of 300 g processed in an automated way starting from the nutritional information available on the CREA* and FoodData Central** databases. It is not food and / or nutritional advice.
* CREATES Food and Nutrition Research Center: https://www.crea.gov.it/alimenti-e-nutrizione https://www.alimentinutrizione.it ** U.S. Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service. FoodData Central, 2019. https://fdc.nal.usda.gov
Ingredients for four servings of Baked Gratinated Fennel with Cooked Ham
- 4 fennel (medium-large)
- 7.05 oz cooked ham (or other deli meat of your choice)
- 1.5 cups bechamel (in my case homemade)
- 3.53 oz cheese (Grana Padano or Parmesan)
- 3.53 oz emmental (or other soft cheese)
- 1 pinch salt
- 1 pinch pepper
- to taste fennel seeds
- 1.7 cups milk
- 1.76 oz butter
- 1.76 oz all-purpose flour
- 1 pinch salt
- 1 pinch nutmeg
Tools for Baked Gratinated Fennel with Bechamel and Cooked Ham Recipe
- 1 Baking dish
- 1 Saucepan
- 1 Whisk
- 1 Small bowl
- 1 Cutting board
- 1 Knife
- 1 Oven
- 1 Spoon
Steps for Baked Gratinated Fennel with Cooked Ham and Homemade Bechamel Recipe
Take the butter directly from the fridge and place it in a small saucepan with high sides. Let it melt and then add the flour, start stirring with the whisk to prevent the roux from burning. Keep the heat low to prevent the flour from turning dark.
You can start adding the milk slowly, in a thin stream into the saucepan while continuously stirring with the whisk. This will prevent the formation of lumps. The bechamel cooking time is 5 minutes.
During this time, you must relentlessly stir with the whisk, also adding a pinch of salt and a pinch of nutmeg. Season to taste, depending on how much flavor you want to give to the homemade bechamel and for what type of dish you will be using it. Since we will use it as a binding ingredient between the fennel, ham, and cheeses, I decided to give an intense nutmeg aroma to my bechamel.
Let the bechamel cool completely by transferring it to a small bowl.
After preparing and letting the bechamel cool, we can proceed with the fennel casserole preparation. Preheat the oven in static mode at 375-390°F. Place the rack in the middle of the oven. Start by slicing and washing the fennel, creating slices of the same thickness, if possible. Take the small bowl where we let the bechamel cool. With a spoon, coat the bottom of the rectangular baking dish, here is the link to purchase the glass baking dish I use for my recipes.
Now layer fennel slices, well arranged and close together, forming a layer. Then place cooked ham slices on top of the fennel, perhaps cut slightly thicker than usual. Cut slices, not too thin, from the emmentaler or other soft cheese you prefer. Place the cheese slices here and there.
Brush everything with bechamel, sprinkle with grated cheese, a pinch of salt, and nutmeg. If you like, you can also add some pepper. Last but not least, fennel seeds, if you like them and want to add even more flavor to this casserole.
Now repeat all these steps, then slices of fennel, cooked ham, emmentaler, bechamel, grated cheese, salt, and nutmeg. I recommend sprinkling the top layer of this fennel casserole with plenty of grated cheese so that a nice, golden, and crunchy crust forms that we love.
We are finally ready to bake, cooking the baked gratinated fennel at 375°F in static mode for 30 minutes. The fennel will turn golden and super delicious, with the cheese becoming super gooey. Finger-licking good. A simple preparation for a unique taste, a hearty side dish, perfect in winter, for meat or fish main courses.
I just have to wish you a good appetite and remind you that I am waiting for you every day here on my blog with many easy, fast, and delicious recipes like this one!!!
Tips and recipe variations:
Respect the oven temperature, not too high otherwise the surface of the casserole may darken too much, just as you should not raise the stovetop flame too high when preparing the homemade bechamel. Too high a flame will burn the flour and the butter making the roux unusable.
As oven baking time stay between 25 and 30 minutes max, if your oven heats and cooks quickly reduce the cooking time.
As variations I can, as already mentioned during the recipe text, suggest varying the cooked ham with other deli meat to your taste, maybe what you have in the fridge opened for a few days or those two or three slices you got from the delicatessen and your child no longer wanted for dinner. You can indeed also use more deli meats to prepare this baked gratinated fennel pie, no one will judge you and we will waste less by using ingredients already at our disposal.
Another variation, as already indicated, you can change the type of cheese, if you don’t like emmentaler, you can choose a Bel Paese, a Galbanino, some Gruyère or Fontina, really any cheese to your taste.
