Description
Six side portions of cauliflower roasted first, then baked with cheddar sauce and panko.
Ingredients
Scale
- 2 pounds Cauliflower florets
- 1 tablespoon Olive oil
- 3/4 teaspoon Fine salt
- 1/4 teaspoon Black pepper
- 3 tablespoons Unsalted butter
- 2 tablespoons All-purpose flour
- 1 1/2 cups Whole milk
- 1 1/2 cups Sharp cheddar, grated
- 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
- 1/3 cup Panko breadcrumbs
Instructions
- Heat oven to 425°F. Toss 2 lb evenly sized cauliflower florets with 1 tbsp olive oil and 1/2 tsp fine salt on a rimmed sheet. Roast about 20 minutes until some edges brown and stems begin to soften. Reduce oven to 400°F and transfer cauliflower to a 2-quart baking dish.
- Melt 2 tbsp of the 3 tbsp butter in a saucepan. Whisk in 2 tbsp all-purpose flour and cook about 1 minute. Add 1 1/2 cups milk gradually, whisking until thick enough to coat a spoon, about 3–5 minutes. Take off heat and stir in 1 1/2 cups grated sharp cheddar, 1 tsp Dijon, remaining 1/4 tsp salt and 1/4 tsp black pepper.
- Pour sauce over cauliflower and toss gently. Melt remaining 1 tbsp butter and mix with 1/3 cup panko; scatter over the top. Bake at 400°F about 20–25 minutes until bubbling at edges and the crumbs are golden.
- Rest 10 minutes and divide into six side portions. Kitchen-test how much moisture roasts off, sauce thickness and oven timing; do not describe this first proposal as tested.
Notes
Recipe-development draft; not kitchen-tested. Timing and yield are estimates. Nutrition has not been calculated.
Additional chilling, resting or cooling time: 10 minutes, included in the total.
Untested conservative estimate: roast florets 20 minutes, cook roux and sauce about 5 minutes, final bake up to 25 minutes, rest 10 minutes; some sauce work can overlap roast. Preheat excluded.
- Prep Time: 20 minutes
- Chilling, resting or cooling: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 50 minutes
- Category: Sides
Nutrition
- Serving Size: One sixth of a 2-quart baking dish