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Cauliflower Cheese Gratin

AI-written · not yet kitchen-tested

The gratin turns soupy if the cauliflower goes into the dish wet. Boil it for only 5 minutes and let it drain and steam dry: it keeps cooking in the oven for another 25 minutes and should still have some bite at the end.

  • Serves 4
  • Prep 30 min
  • Cook 25 min
  • Rest 5 min
  • Total 60 min
  • medium
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This recipe was written with AI assistance and has not yet been kitchen-tested. Check quantities and times as you cook, and follow safe core temperatures for meat, poultry, fish and eggs.

Ingredients

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  • 1 cauliflower one head, about 2 lb (1 kg), cut into florets of about 1 1/2 inches (4 cm)
  • 1 tsp salt for the cooking water
  • butter for greasing the dish
  • 40 g (1.4 oz) butter
  • 40 g (1.4 oz) all-purpose flour
  • 500 ml (2 cup) milk cold or room temperature
  • 150 g (5.3 oz) Gouda coarsely shredded, 100 g for the sauce and 50 g for the top; use a cheese made without animal rennet if you eat strictly vegetarian
  • 1 pinch ground nutmeg freshly grated
  • salt to taste
  • black pepper to taste

Method

  1. Heat the oven to 400 °F (200 °C) conventional, or 350 °F (180 °C) convection. Grease a baking dish, about 8 × 12 inches (20 × 30 cm), with butter.
  2. Remove the leaves and the hard core from the cauliflower and cut the head into florets of about 1 1/2 inches (4 cm). Boil them in 2 quarts (2 liters) of salted water (1 teaspoon salt) for 5 minutes, until crisp-tender.
  3. Drain the cauliflower in a colander and let it drain well and steam dry for 5 minutes. Then put it into the dish.
  4. For the sauce, melt the butter in a saucepan over medium heat, add the flour and cook for 1 minute, stirring, without letting it take on color. Pour in the milk in three portions, whisking vigorously, until no lumps are left.
  5. Bring the sauce to a boil, stirring, and simmer over low heat for 3 to 4 minutes, until it is creamy and coats a spoon thickly. Take it off the heat, stir in 3 1/2 oz (100 g) of the Gouda until melted and season with nutmeg, salt and pepper.
  6. Pour the sauce over the cauliflower and sprinkle with the remaining Gouda. Bake for about 25 minutes, until the top is golden brown, the sauce bubbles at the edge and a knife slides into a stem with slight resistance.
  7. Let the gratin stand for 5 minutes so the sauce can thicken a little.

Tip: If the sauce gets lumpy, whisk it smooth or blend it with an immersion blender, and pour in the milk more slowly next time.

Tip: The sauce should be a little thicker than you would like to eat with a spoon when it goes into the dish, because the cauliflower still releases water in the oven.