vegetable Au Gratin

Ingredients:

• Carrots - 100 gm
• Beans -  100 gm
• Cabbage - 3 leaves
• Capsicum - 1
• Mushroom - 4 to 6
• Cooked Noodles - 1/4 cup
• Tomato Ketchup - 6 tbsp
• Red chilli sauce - 2tbsp
• Cheese - 2 cubes
• Mozeralla Cheese - 3/4 cup
• Bread crumbs - 4 tbsp
• Butter - 1 knob
• Salt
• Pepper

For the white Sauce:

• Butter 1 tbsp
• Corn flour - 1 tbsp
• Milk 1 cup
• Salt and pepper - to taste

Method:

Cut the carrots into thin slices of one inch long. Cut the beans as strips of one inch. Boil carrot, beans and cabbage in little water with salt. Drain and keep aside.

De seed the capsicum and cut into thin strips.

Cut the mushrooms into 4 pieces. In a pan melt butter and slightly brown the mushrooms in it.

Make the white sauce. In a thick bottomed pan melt butter add the corn flour and stir well till bubbles come. Simmer the stove add the milk all at once and stir well lumps may form. Shred one cube cheese and add along with milk. Season with salt and pepper.

Butter a baking dish. Layer it with a thin layer of white sauce. Layer with one vegetable, followed by tomato ketchup (mix red chilli sauce along with this), noodles, other vegetable, mushroom, next vegetable and then pour all the white sauce evenly over it. Cover with grated mozzarella cheese and sprinkle the bread crumbs over it.

Bake at 180 degree celcius till the bread crumbs brown slightly. else micro wave it in grill or combination till the cheese melts.

Note: Salt to the dish is added in the sauce and in the vegetables. Do not boil capsicum. You can also flavor with oregano in the white sauce which will impart a beautiful smell. The mushroom is optional as are the vegetables. \You can also add potatoes if you like it with cheese. Increasing the quantity of white sauce after every layer of vegetables and also cheese improves the taste. But diet conscious people should avoid making Au Gratin often. This is a heavy dish. So it could be served for lunch or dinner.