The Blond Cook

Serving Up Cooking Simplicity

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Vegetable Tian

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While browsing through Facebook on a lazy Sunday morning, I recently came across a mouth-watering recipe for Vegetable Tian.

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Vegetable Tian

The term tian simply refers to a dish of thinly sliced vegetables that have been cooked in olive oil and baked au gratin.

One of my very best friends recently gave me a few squash fresh from the garden.  Another awesome friend gave me tomatoes (I obviously have great friends!).  All I really had to get to make this dish was zucchini, Italian cheese and an onion.  The remaining ingredients I already had on-hand.

Vegetable Tian

It all starts with sautéing sweet onions with minced garlic in olive oil.  Evenly distribute the onion and garlic mixture in the bottom of a greased casserole dish.  Arrange thinly sliced tomatoes, squash, potatoes and zucchini over the onion mixture.

Vegetable Tian

Sprinkle with Italian seasoning, salt and pepper.  Cover with aluminum foil and bake for 30 minutes.

Vegetable Tian

Remove aluminum foil, sprinkle with an Italian cheese blend and re-bake (uncovered) until the cheese browns, about an additional 15 minutes.

This is an excellent and healthy way to use your fresh garden vegetables.  I always like to give credit where it is due… this recipe was “shared” by one of my friends and came from a closed group on Facebook called Healthy Choices.  I also found the same recipe on Just a Pinch.  I hope you enjoy it as much as I did.

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Vegetable Tian

★★★★★

5 from 4 reviews

  • Prep Time: 20 minutes
  • Cook Time: 45 minutes
  • Total Time: 1 hour 5 minutes
Print Recipe

Ingredients

  • 1 tablespoon olive oil
  • 1–1/2 cups diced sweet onion
  • 1–1/2 teaspoons minced garlic
  • 1 medium zucchini, thinly sliced
  • 1 medium yellow squash, thinly sliced
  • 1 medium baking potato, thinly sliced
  • 3 medium tomatoes, thinly sliced
  • 1 cup shredded Italian cheese blend
  • Italian seasoning, to taste
  • Salt and pepper, to taste

Instructions

  1. Preheat your oven to 400 degrees F. Sauté onions and garlic in olive oil in a skillet.
  2. Spread the onion and garlic mixture in the bottom of a casserole dish sprayed with cooking spray.
  3. Evenly arrange the vegetable slices vertically in the casserole dish, alternating vegetables. Sprinkle with desired amount of salt, pepper and Italian seasoning.
  4. Cover with aluminum foil and bake for 30 minutes.
  5. Remove aluminum foil. Sprinkle with Italian cheese blend. Return to oven and bake an additional 15 minutes (uncovered), or until cheese is browned.

Vegetable Tian ~ Thinly sliced squash, zucchini, potatoes and tomatoes on a bed of onions with seasonings and cheese... a beautiful and delicious side dish!

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Lori Ciaralli says

    One of my favourites! Here’s a shortcut that I use. After all vegetables are sliced, on a large cutting board, make a single layer of tomatoes. Put a slice of potato on each tomato. Then a slice of zucchini on top of each, etc. When filling up your baking dish, pick up one veggie stack at a time and arrange them in a spiral as you show in your photo. Saves me lots of time.

    Reply

  2. Tony says

    This sounds amazing and easy, I would use a mandolin to slice everybody, I don’t think I would change anything until I tried it… Thanks..

    Reply

  3. Katie says

    Wow – this dish is absolutely beautiful! The colors, the pattern of the veggies…it looks amazing. I definitely want to try this out for myself!

    Reply

  4. Judy @Savoring Today says

    I too saw this on facebook and was inspired to try it — delicious and colorful side for any meal. Thanks for hunting down the original, I tried and couldn’t find it. Credit is important and it is a very good recipe. 🙂

    Reply

    • Amy @ The Blond Cook says

      Hi Jess, thank you! I am currently out of town, but will include her link when I get home. It is definitely a delicious side dish!

      Reply

    • Jesi50 says

      This is a traditional french provincial recipe. It was created long before any of us were born. The credit goes down in history.

      Reply

      • Jess says

        That’s cute, but this exact recipe came from another site, which was the point of my response since this blog’s writer didn’t know exactly whom to credit. I’m sure the Italian cheese blend and Italian seasoning wasn’t in the French provencial recipes… Have a good day, boo 🙂

        Reply

          • Jess says

            Oh yes, thank you for thinking so! Considering that you can make all sorts of dishes from those simple ingredients you mentioned, if it’s different, then it’s different and credit is due to the original content poster, especially when it’s word for word. I’m glad you’re still concerned about it, though. It’s important to talk about it. More important than anything else we could possibly give attention to.

  9. Katie says

    I know this is an old post, so I might not get a reply. I was wondering, if you are planning to make this and then take it somewhere, how would this re heat and how might you alter the cooking times to account for that? Thanks!

    Reply

    • Amy @ The Blond Cook says

      Hi Katie! I’m so sorry — I cannot say because I’ve always served it immediately after cooking. I have re-heated leftovers and it was great! Happy Thanksgiving!

      Reply

    • Laura says

      I’ve made it for Thanksgiving the last couple of years–baked in the morning, transported, and then reheated before dinner, and it’s always been great! I just cover it with foil to transport, then put back in the over for 20 minutes or so right before dinner (haven’t altered earlier cooking times).

      Reply

    • Amy @ The Blond Cook says

      Hi Mary, I’ve never salted it and it has turned out perfect every time. Hope you enjoy it! 🙂

      Reply

    • Lori Ciaralli says

      I’ve never done that, but I do find I need to drain excess liquid near the end to avoid soupy results. It’s delicious either way.

      Reply

  11. Michelle says

    I used to make this years ago and just remembered it today. I love your version. I leave out the potatoes and add white beans to the onions and garlic. Yum!

    Reply

  12. Diana says

    Wow! This looks so beautiful and delicious!
    Do you think it will work without the onion? My husband can’t eat onion at all.
    Thanks!

    Reply

    • Amy @ The Blond Cook says

      Hi Diana, I’ve never made it without onion but think it would be good without it. Thanks so much and hope you enjoy! 🙂

      Reply

  13. Lyn says

    I have made this before and it’s delicious, I make several times a year, but it’s really great with fresh Vegas from the garden.

    Reply

  14. carla says

    Love this dish. Colorful and delicious. The previous comments were very helpful. I salted the veggies and let them sit for about an hour, then wiped away the excess water and stacked them as Lori said. Great time-saver. I had eggplant in my garden, so I added it also. It was a big hit with family and friends. It has become a favorite.

    Reply

    • Amy @ The Blond Cook says

      Eggplant sounds like a delicious addition, Carla! Thanks so much and so happy to hear your family and friends enjoyed it! 🙂

      Reply

        • Amy @ The Blond Cook says

          Hi Carla, I’ve never made this ahead of time so I can’t say with certainty. I would probably not do it because the sliced vegetables would lose their moisture over time and the potatoes would brown (after being sliced) but again, I haven’t tried it so can’t say for sure.

          Reply

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