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.
| Cauliflower and Cheese |
Recipe Type: Main Dish
Author:
Prep time: 15 mins
Cook time: 45 mins
Total time: 1 hour
Serves: 4+
You won’t miss the pasta in this British take on macaroni and cheese.
Ingredients
- 1 head of cauliflower, broken into smaller chunks
- 2 Tbsp butter
- 2 Tbsp flour
- 1 1/2 cups milk
- Dash of salt and pepper, to taste
- Dash of nutmeg
- 1/2 tsp garlic powder, to taste
- 1 cup cheddar cheese, grated and divided into two servings
- 1/2 -1 cup chopped ham, optional
Instructions
- 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 1/2 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 1/2 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.