Sweet pepper gratin: a simple recipe that can be a meal-saver

Sweet pepper gratin is a recipe that screams summer out loud. I usually make a lot to enjoy for a few days. You can use this savory strips in sandwiches or as a side dish for a quick dinner. A real time saver.

The best thing about this recipe is that it takes little to no time to make but it’s so delicious! Where I live the summer stretches a lot into fall. Usually it’s still hot until mid October and peppers keep on growing in the field until very late in the season.

What I usually like to do is buy a lot of peppers when the season is over and prices are cheaper. then I freeze them or make sauces and spreads to keep enjoying the peppers once in a  while during winter.

I usually do not buy vegetables that come from greenhouses or that are not in season unless I have no other choice. At the end of each season, instead, I buy in bulk what I want to eat from time to time (just to break the habits a bit). Same veggies for months on end might be a bit boring!

Why you’ll love this pepper gratin

There are three simple reasons why you will love this recipe:

• Easy to make: making this is so easy that you can even get your children to prepare it. Actually when I was I child I loved tasks like this. My mom allowed me to cook the simple dishes on my own and I was very proud. This is also a nice way to get your picky eater to eat more vegetables. When children cook on their own, they are more likely to eat things they do not usually eat. Besides the fun of making this with children, you’ll also enjoy a quick fix for your daily meals when you are busy. It takes less than 10min to wash, cut and season the peppers and then it will be the oven to do the cooking
• Super tasty: this recipe, though very simple, yield a very yummy result. The sweetness of the peppers with the kick of the chili flakes are a good combo and, I guarantee, you won’t stop eating it until it’s gone.
• Healthy: this pepper gratin recipe is not only simple and easy, but also really healthy. We already touched on how pepper can be a powerful allied for our health in my bell pepper cream recipe. In fact peppers are rich in vitamins, folic acid and also potassium. They also contain lutein and zeaxanthin that are good for your eyesight. And last but not least a lot of fibers.

How to buy bell peppers in the store

When you go shopping for peppers there are a few things you can keep in mind to pick the best ones:

1. First they have to be very firm, if they have wrinkles they are not that fresh
2. The stem should be green and long. The longer and greener the stem, the fresher the pepper
3. If the pepper has small blemishes or black spots, but is firm and has a nice looking stem, you can still buy it. This might be a sign that no chemicals have been used to treat the plant. However if the blemishes are big and more like soft spots, then they might not be that fresh or that storage was not optimal. They are still good but you will have to discard that part and cook the pepper immediately.
4. The color of the pepper does not indicate its quality. It only shows how long has been on the plant. Usually All peppers are green in their first stage, then become yellow and lastly red. Each color has its own property and healthy compounds so I recommend to buy mixed color pepper to get more of the healthy stuff.

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Sweet pepper gratin

Easy and quick side dish that you can make ahead and it will keep for days. You can serve the peppers either hot or cold. You'll see they will shrink a lot, so I recommend to prepare more so you'll have plenty. They keep well in the fridge for a few days.

Course Side Dish

Cuisine Italian

Keyword bell pepper gratin, pepper gratin, sweet papper gratin

Prep Time 10 minutes minutes

Cook Time 30 minutes minutes

Total Time 40 minutes minutes

Servings 4

Ingredients

• 6 Large peppers
• 40 gr oat flour or ground oatmeal you can use breadcrumbs if you do not have oats
• 1 tsp salt
• black pepper to taste
• 1/4 tsp garlic powder
• chilli flakes to taste optional
• 1 tbsp olive oil extra virgin is best

Instructions

• Preheat the oven to 200° (390°F). Wash the peppers and cut them open.
• Remove the seeds and cut the peppers into stripes
• Put the stripes into a bowl and add the garlic, salt and pepper and the olive oil. Mix well to coat the pepper strips evenly
• Line a baking tray with parchment paper or use a non-stick tray. Line the stripes on to the tray and dust with the oats and chili flakes.
• Cook the papper for around 30minutes or until golden brown

Notes

You can make the same recipe with fennel, zucchini or carrots!