Cauliflower Gratin
Freshly cooked cauliflower, covered with a delicious homemade bechamel sauce, topped with cheese, then baked in the oven. this cauliflower french recipe is great for vegetarian looking for a french vegetarian recipe idea that will not leave them hungry. that cauliflower with white sauce can be served as a side or main and is really tasty. The sauce used in this cauliflower with cheese recipe is a bechamel sauce made from scratch. infused with flavours of cloves ,onions, cayenne pepper and bayleaf which really give you that lovely taste throughout the cauliflower gratin.
Ingredients
- 2 1/2 cups cauliflower
- 1 cup grated cheddar cheese
BECHAMEL SAUCE:
- 2 1/2 cups milk
- 1/2 cup plain flour
- 1/2 cup butter to taste
- 1/2 teaspoon salt to taste
- 1/4 teaspoon white pepper
- 1 small bay leaves
- 1 pinch cayenne pepper
- 1/2 yellow onions
- 4 cloves placed in onion
Instructions
PREPARE YOUR INGREDIENTS AND BOIL SOME WATER:
- clean trim and wash your cauliflower in to medium size florets.
- Put a large pan pan with water and salt to boil (for the cauliflower)
- measure you flour, butter, and milk.
MAKE THE BECHAMEL SAUCE:
- Pour the milk in a sauce pan. add salt, pepper, a bay leaf and half and onion pricked with cloves.
- Bring to the milk to the boil on low heat. ( when the milk reach boil point point turn the heat off and leave to infuse until your roux has cool down)
- While the milk is warming up, use another pan on low heat and melt the butter the first.
- as soon as the butter is melted add all of the flour in the pan. mix well with a whisk over low heat for 1 to 2 minutes.
- when done turn the heat of and let that mix ( the roux) cool down.
- when the roux ( mix of butter and flour) has cool down, pour the milk over (making sure you remove the onions and bay leaf)
- Bring now the mix of roux and milk roux to the boil on low to medium heat, stirring continuously with a whisk. very quickly the mix will thicken and start boiling.
- when the sauce is boiling just keep on cooking it for another 2 minutes (while keeping on stirring) then turn the heat off. the Bechamel sauce is ready
COOK THE CAULIFLOWER:
- By now your water should be boiling so just put the cauliflower in the boiling water and cook the florets until tender.
- when they cooked rinse them over cold water.
DRESS THE DISH, BAKE AND SERVE:
- Heat oven to 350F
- Use a baking dish or equivalent. Add a layer of Bechamel sauce on the bottom of the dish.
- cover with all of the cauliflower florets and top up with the rest of the Bechamel as( as shown in the video)
- finally if you like top up with grated cheese and bake in the oven for 30-40 minutes or untill a nice golden crust has forme on top.
- when cook serve immediately.
Video
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