In many restaurants in France, I have been served a vegetable flan as a side dish with either meat or fish. Some were more interesting than others, but they all had one thing in common – a thick, eggy custard base, usually flavored with a little bit of cheese. This fragrant carrot and courgette flan is a perfect side dish to chicken, yet I think with a salad and a glass of wine it would make a perfect light lunch.
Carrot & Courgette Flan
Serves 4
- 300g courgette (1 medium)
- 170g carrots (about 4)
- knob of butter
- 1 tbsp mild olive oil, plus extra to grease the baking dish
- 2 shallots, finely chopped
- 2 clove of garlic, finely chopped
- 3 eggs
- 200ml crème fraîche
- 50ml milk
- 1 tsp dried coriander
- 1 tsp dried mint
- salt (preferably fleur de sel) and freshly-cracked pepper
- 60g grated goat’s cheese
Preheat the oven to 200°C and grease a 27 x 17 cm baking dish with a little mild olive oil. Grate the carrots and courgette. Melt the butter with the olive and gently sweat the shallots and garlic for about 2-3 minutes. Increase the heat, add the grated vegetables and cook while stirring for a further 5 minutes. In a large bowl, whisk the eggs, crème fraîche, milk, coriander, mint and salt and pepper. Stir in the goat’s cheese. Transfer the vegetables to the greased baking dish and pour the batter over them. Bake for approximately 45 minutes. You might want to cover the dish after about half an hour.
