Cauliflower and Cheese
Wed, Mar 3, 2010
Around the World, Disguising Healthy Foods, England, Europe, Main Dishes, Search by Course, Side Dishes, Vegetarian
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Cauliflower and cheese is the British take on the popular comfort food: macaroni and cheese. What a clever way to disguise the cauliflower. We recently had some friends over for dinner and I made this dish…and nobody missed the pasta! I can’t wait to try this with broccoli, carrots and other vegetables. What veggies wouldn’t be good with a cheesy Mornay sauce?!
Instead of putting chunks of bread on the top (a common addition to this dish) I added chopped ham for some color, texture and flavor. The smoky, saltiness of the ham paired beautifully with the creamy, buttery cheese sauce.
- 1 head of cauliflower, broken into smaller chunks
- 2 Tbsp butter
- 2 Tbsp flour
- 1½ cups milk
- Dash of salt and pepper, to taste
- Dash of nutmeg
- ½ tsp garlic powder, to taste
- 1 cup cheddar cheese, grated and divided into two servings
- ½ -1 cup chopped ham, optional
- Lightly boil the cauliflower chunks (for 3-5 minutes). You don't want to overcook them because they will continue to cook in the oven.
- Make the sauce by melting the butter in a pan over low heat.
- Stir in the flour and let it thicken.
- In a separate pan, warm the milk.
- Gradually stir the warm milk into the flour and butter, whisking constantly.
- Then add the seasonings.
- Be careful not to burn the sauce.
- Remove the sauce from the heat and stir in ½ cup grated cheddar cheese.
- Mix until the sauce is creamy.
- Layer the boiled cauliflower in a casserole dish.
- Top with chopped ham if desired.
- Pour the mornay sauce over the top and sprinkle with the remaining ½ cup grated cheddar cheese. Use more cheese or a mixture of cheese types, if desired.
- Bake at 350 degrees until the top of the dish is bubbling and the cauliflower is tender when pricked with a fork.
- You can broil it for a minute or two if you want to brown the top.
Tags: cauli and cheese, cauliflower, cheese, cheesy cauliflower, ham, veggie mac and cheese
This dish was so yummy! I don’t usually like cauliflower…but this was so good I forgot I was even eating veggies! I’m also a huge fan of macaroni and cheese, but I didn’t miss the pasta one bit!