Preheat oven to 400°F. Grease casserole dish with butter and set to the side. Place parchment-lined baking sheet to the side.
Oven-roast cauliflower: Trim florets from the head of cauliflower, transferring them into a large bowl. Drizzle with oil then sprinkle with garlic powder, salt and pepper. Spill onto a parchment-lined baking sheet. Transfer to oven and roast for 25 minutes, tossing halfway through.
For the Mornay sauce: DOUBLE THIS SAUCE FOR A CREAMIER DISH! Scald milk in a small saucepan and set aside. Melt butter in a second saucepan and stir in flour. Cook for 1 minute then slowly add the hot milk. Whisk to eliminate lumps as sauce thickens. Remove pan from heat and bring to work surface. Add cheese and whisk until melted into the sauce. Season with salt, pepper and nutmeg. Cover and set aside.
Prepare crumb topping: Place Panko in medium-sized bowl. Add the Gruyère and Leicester tossing to combine. Have Parmesan at the ready.
Assemble: Remove cauliflower from oven, transferring it to the greased casserole dish. Spread florets into an even layer. Spill sauce over the cauliflower, then sprinkle top with the cheesy crumb mixture. Finish with a sprinkle of Parmesan. Place dish on the baking sheet then transfer to oven and bake for 15 minutes or until top is golden and cheese has melted.
Remove from oven leaving casserole to cool for 5 minutes before sprinkling with fresh chopped parsley. Serve with a favourite main.
Cauliflower Casserole
Ingredients
For the cauliflower:
1 head of cauliflower
2 tablespoons vegetable or canola oil
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon kosher salt
½ teaspoon black pepper
For the Mornay sauce:
2 tablespoons butter
2 tablespoons unbleached all-purpose flour
1 cup whole milk, scalded
¼ cup Gruyère cheese, grated
¼ teaspoon kosher salt
black or white pepper to taste
grated nutmeg
For the crumb topping:
1 cup seasoned Panko crumbs
¼ cup grated Gruyère
¼ cup grated Red Leicester
¼ cup grated Parmesan
To serve:
fresh chopped parsley
Directions
Preheat oven to 400°F. Grease casserole dish with butter and set to the side. Place parchment-lined baking sheet to the side.
Oven-roast cauliflower: Trim florets from the head of cauliflower, transferring them into a large bowl. Drizzle with oil then sprinkle with garlic powder, salt and pepper. Spill onto a parchment-lined baking sheet. Transfer to oven and roast for 25 minutes, tossing halfway through.
For the Mornay sauce: DOUBLE THIS SAUCE FOR A CREAMIER DISH! Scald milk in a small saucepan and set aside. Melt butter in a second saucepan and stir in flour. Cook for 1 minute then slowly add the hot milk. Whisk to eliminate lumps as sauce thickens. Remove pan from heat and bring to work surface. Add cheese and whisk until melted into the sauce. Season with salt, pepper and nutmeg. Cover and set aside.
Prepare crumb topping: Place Panko in medium-sized bowl. Add the Gruyère and Leicester tossing to combine. Have Parmesan at the ready.
Assemble: Remove cauliflower from oven, transferring it to the greased casserole dish. Spread florets into an even layer. Spill sauce over the cauliflower, then sprinkle top with the cheesy crumb mixture. Finish with a sprinkle of Parmesan. Place dish on the baking sheet then transfer to oven and bake for 15 minutes or until top is golden and cheese has melted.
Remove from oven leaving casserole to cool for 5 minutes before sprinkling with fresh chopped parsley. Serve with a favourite main.
Cauliflower Casserole
5 / 5. 4
Tender oven-roasted cauliflower florets topped with a creamy cheese sauce, baked under a crispy breadcrumb and cheese crust…
This CAULIFLOWER CASSEROLE is the cheesy side dish recipe we’ve all been waiting for!
We’re expecting your friends and family to fall as madly in love with this easy-to-make side dish recipe as we did. I mean seriously, what’s not to love? We’re talking oven-roasted cauliflower, a creamy Mornay sauce, sprinkles of more cheese and a crispy breadcrumb crust to finish. Our CAULIFLOWER CASSEROLE recipe is a keeper and, as requested, no sour cream, bacon, onion, or mayonnaise in sight!
UPDATE!!! PROTIP: DOUBLE THE CHEESE SAUCE IF YOU WANT A CREAMIER CAULIFLOWER CASSEROLE DISH!
Now, if casseroles and oven-baked veggie side dishes are your thing, we have other popular recipes we know you’ll enjoy. After making this, try our CLASSIC BEAN CASSEROLE, our creamy BROCCOLI CASSEROLE or CORN PUDDING, this hugely popular ZUCCHINI CASSEROLE and our bubbly SCALLOPED POTATO RECIPE. You can serve these delicious sides on weeknights with a simple main or add them to your menu plans for holidays like Thanksgiving, Christmas, Chanukah, New Year’s and Easter.
Here are a few tips to help you make this CAULIFLOWER CASSEROLE at home or at the cottage:
INGREDIENTS
Hopefully, this first photo reflects the simplicity of the dish. Our goal was to create a tasty side that’s big on flavour but light on preparation. We expect a few faithful followers might wonder why we included the knob of butter in this ingredient photo; the oil and seasoning is used to oven-roast the cauliflower, then the butter comes in to grease the pan or casserole dish for the final bake. So far, so good, and so easy!
CAULIFLOWER
CAULIFLOWER is one of those vegetables that never disappoints. We often see it raw on a veggie-and-dip platter, steamed as part of a vegetable plate, or as little florets bobbing in a hearty soup or stew. But cauliflower doesn’t just look and taste good, it’s also good for us too! Check out these nutrition facts. Cauliflower is a low-carb vegetable that’s low in calories yet rich in fibre and a variety of vitamins and minerals: vitamin C, vitamin K, vitamin B6, folate, potassium and magnesium.
Preparing the cauliflower for this homemade casserole recipe could not be easier. We suggest gently cutting around the core of the cauliflower head to remove it from the central stem, then almost crack the head of the cauliflower open. After that, you can pluck or cut the florets into smaller bite-sized pieces. If you find any darkened or blemished nodes on the head of cauliflower, you can simply cut or pluck them away and discard. Transfer the florets into a large bowl, drizzle with oil, add salt, pepper and garlic powder then toss gently to coat. It’s quite simple to work with this readily available vegetable.
OVEN-ROASTED CAULIFLOWER
Here’s the game changer with this recipe, where we’re oven-roasting the cauliflower as opposed to boiling or steaming it. Having to drain boiled cauliflower and blot it to remove excess moisture seemed like so much work. Also, boiling or steaming it simply softens it while oven-roasting it imparts a pleasing golden brown colour to the florets while also giving it a rich, nutty flavour. That flavour paired with the cheese sauce and crumb topping is a win-win. You’ll know what we mean once you take your first bite of this dish.
CASSEROLE DISH
Speaking of the dish, we’re leaving that decision to you. Feel free to keep things basic and use a rectangular glass casserole dish or a lovely stainless steel oval one. If making this over the holidays, a festive-coloured, oven-safe crock or baking dish is the way to go especially if you intend to serve this side dish from a buffet or table side.
MORNAY SAUCE
Just the mention of a classic MORNAY SAUCE gets us excited. How could it not when we take a creamy béchamel sauce made with butter, flour and milk and enhance it with the flavour of a favourite cheese, like Gruyère. The moment we stir or whisk the sauce to slowly melt that cheese and get that hallmark creamy texture is always wonderful.
Snagging a quick taste to get the seasoning right is also memorable. Pro tip: feel free to add a sprinkle of freshly grated nutmeg to the sauce to maximize the flavour of this dish. Pro tip two: DOUBLE THE CHEESE SAUCE IF YOU WANT A CREAMIER CAULIFLOWER CASSEROLE DISH! Amazing!
CHEESE CRUMB TOPPING
So let’s talk about the cheesy crumb topping mixture that gets sprinkled onto this classic casserole dish. Our key consideration: don’t be skimpy with the cheese. Additionally, make sure you use cheese with big flavour. We went with two of our favourites, Gruyère and a tangy, big-flavoured Red Leicester. Other cheeses that will work well in this recipe include Monterey Jack cheese, blue cheese, sharp cheddar cheese, stilton, pecorino and Havarti.
Mix your favourite type of cheese with seasoned Panko breadcrumb mixture, then simply sprinkle the dish trying to cover the cauliflower evenly. Oh, and then, because we’re overachievers, we added an additional pass of freshly grated Parmesan cheese. In our opinion, you can never have too much cheese, especially when we’re doing an oven-baked casserole.
ASSEMBLE
The assembly of this casserole is as straightforward as baking it. When your guests ask “What’s the best way of making a cauliflower casserole?”, and trust us, lots of ‘em will ask, the reply is, “That’s easy! Oven-roast the cauliflower, transfer it to a casserole dish, add a creamy Mornay sauce over top then sprinkle with a cheesy breadcrumb topping and bake.”
OVEN BAKE
After assembling the casserole, simply transfer it to the oven and bake for 15 minutes or until the cheese melts and the top gets golden brown. Then remove the casserole, let it cool for five minutes, sprinkle with fresh chopped parsley and serve. It’s all quite perfect.
This side dish is so tasty, we suggest you PIN the recipe to a favourite vegetable or side dish board on PINTEREST or BOOKMARK this tab for easy access. SHARE it with friends so they can make them too. We’d also appreciate seeing pics of all the delicious dishes you’re making these days. Use #weekendatthecottage when you post those pics on Facebook and Instagram. Thanks!
This CAULIFLOWER CASSEROLE is amazing. Try it soon!
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Ingredients
For the cauliflower:
1 head of cauliflower
2 tablespoons vegetable or canola oil
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon kosher salt
½ teaspoon black pepper
For the Mornay sauce:
2 tablespoons butter
2 tablespoons unbleached all-purpose flour
1 cup whole milk, scalded
¼ cup Gruyère cheese, grated
¼ teaspoon kosher salt
black or white pepper to taste
grated nutmeg
For the crumb topping:
1 cup seasoned Panko crumbs
¼ cup grated Gruyère
¼ cup grated Red Leicester
¼ cup grated Parmesan
To serve:
fresh chopped parsley
Directions
Preheat oven to 400°F. Grease casserole dish with butter and set to the side. Place parchment-lined baking sheet to the side.
Oven-roast cauliflower: Trim florets from the head of cauliflower, transferring them into a large bowl. Drizzle with oil then sprinkle with garlic powder, salt and pepper. Spill onto a parchment-lined baking sheet. Transfer to oven and roast for 25 minutes, tossing halfway through.
For the Mornay sauce: DOUBLE THIS SAUCE FOR A CREAMIER DISH! Scald milk in a small saucepan and set aside. Melt butter in a second saucepan and stir in flour. Cook for 1 minute then slowly add the hot milk. Whisk to eliminate lumps as sauce thickens. Remove pan from heat and bring to work surface. Add cheese and whisk until melted into the sauce. Season with salt, pepper and nutmeg. Cover and set aside.
Prepare crumb topping: Place Panko in medium-sized bowl. Add the Gruyère and Leicester tossing to combine. Have Parmesan at the ready.
Assemble: Remove cauliflower from oven, transferring it to the greased casserole dish. Spread florets into an even layer. Spill sauce over the cauliflower, then sprinkle top with the cheesy crumb mixture. Finish with a sprinkle of Parmesan. Place dish on the baking sheet then transfer to oven and bake for 15 minutes or until top is golden and cheese has melted.
Remove from oven leaving casserole to cool for 5 minutes before sprinkling with fresh chopped parsley. Serve with a favourite main.
Until Cottage Season
