Cauliflower au gratin with cheese
ANTI-CHEF · ♥ 11.9K likes · 255K views · 12 min video
Read about cheese in the BrightCulinary Book
Timestamp
Ingredients
Method
Techniques
- 1 whole cauliflower
Pull the outside leaves off the cauliflower and cut the stem off close under the head.
Break the florets off the stalk, peel the skin off their stems, and cut a slit in any stem wider than a quarter inch so it cooks quicker.
Peel the central stalk deep enough to expose its tender flesh and cut it into diagonal pieces. Wash thoroughly in cold water.
- water
Bring a big pot of water to a boil, add the florets, bring back to a boil and blanch nine to 12 minutes, until a knife pierces the stem easily and it retains the merest suggestion of crunchiness at the core.
Tip quickly into a colander and into a bowl of very cold water to stop the cooking, then drain after a few minutes. Handle it all very gently.
- 42 g butter
- 500 ml milk
- ¼ tsp salt
Melt 42 g of butter in a saucepan, and on another burner bring the milk and salt to a boil.
- 42 g flour
Add an equal amount of flour to the butter and mix about two minutes until frothy; that is the white roux.
Off the heat, add the boiling milk all at once and beat with a wire whisk until it blends together. Return to moderately high heat and keep whisking until it comes back to a boil, then boil one minute, still whisking.
- 85 g grated Parmesan and Swiss cheese
Blend in 85 g of equal parts grated Parmesan and Swiss cheese until fully incorporated.
Finishing the mornay with cheese
- nutmeg
- cayenne pepper
- ½–1 oz butter
Add a pinch of nutmeg and a pinch of cayenne, then enrich with half an ounce to an ounce of butter, a little at a time. That is the sauce mornay.
Butter a baking dish two inches deep and eight inches long lightly, and spread a third of the sauce mornay over the bottom.
Layering the gratin
- butter
Lay the cauliflower on top, slicing the bigger pieces in half, and season with salt and pepper.
Preheat the oven to 375F. Pour on the remaining sauce and distribute it so everywhere is covered.
- 2 tbsp breadcrumbs
- 2 tbsp Swiss cheese
- 23 g melted butter
Sprinkle over two tablespoons of breadcrumbs and two tablespoons of grated Swiss cheese in an even layer, then pour about 23 g of melted butter over the top.
Bake on the upper part of the oven to brown lightly on top for half an hour, with a tray below to catch drips.
- parsley
If it has not browned after half an hour, finish it under the broiler. Serve with parsley on top.