Cauliflower Cheese

Vegetarian. Serves: 4 (easily). Prep. and cooking: 35 mins.

Always a reliable filling meal.

Ingredients

1 large cauliflower
50 g flour
75 g butter
½ l milk
100 g fresh cream
50 g grated Gruyère cheese
salt and pepper
pinch nutmeg

Technique

Wash the cauliflower and separate into small florets.  Boil gently in salted water for 10 minutes.

Prepare the Béchamel sauce:  Melt 50 g of butter in a saucepan and blend in the flour gradually, stirring constantly to avoid any lumps.  Pour in the milk slowly, stirring all the time.

Bring to boil and leave to look for 5 minutes.  Add the salt, pepper and nutmeg.  Remove from the heat and blend in the fresh cream.

Heat the oven to 230℃.  Strain the cauliflower.  Butter a gratin dish with the remaining 25 g of butter.  Arrange the cauliflower florets on it and pour over the Béchamel sauce..  Scatter with grated cheese and cook in the over for about 15 minutes before serving immediately.

Note:  Cheddar cheese can be substituted for the Gruyère quite happily and can also be mixed into the sauce, if desired..

Cheesy Veg. Pie

Very, very easy.  The only thing to remember is to thaw out any frozen or chilled ingredients beforehand.  Although things like frozen peas and corn can be added directly to the boiling water.

Ingredients

1 packet flaky pastry, at room temperature 
2 tbsp butter
2 tbsp flour
½ litre milk
lots of grated cheese
assorted veg. defrosted/peeled/chopped into bite sized pieces
(peas, corn, broccoli, cabbage, cauliflower, potato etc.)

Method

  1. Prepare all the veg. depending on the types chosen.  Peel and chop potato, carrots, etc. into bite sized pieces.  Chop up broccoli or cauliflower and the like into florets.  Defrost frozen peas and sweetcorn and so on.
  2. Simmer the veg. in a pan of salted water until lightly cooked. This can all be done in the same pan if tipped in at different times (e.g. root veg first, then florets, then smaller podded veg). Drain the veg.
  3. Make a cheese sauce, by melting the butter in a pan and cooking the flour in it. Then, add the milk slowly, mixing all the time to avoid lumps. Finally, add in the cheese and stir until smooth.
  4. Pour the drained veg. into the sauce and stir well. Tip into a casserole dish
  5. Roll out the pastry to roughly fit the top of the casserole. Score 2 or 3 short lines through the pastry in the centre to allow the steam out, then place on top of the cheesy veg mixture
  6. Bake for 20 to 25 mins at 200°C