Baked cauliflower with butter and Parmesan cheese.
Steps
1
Prepping and Blanching the Cauliflower
Ingredients
1 head cauliflower (approx. 1 1/2 lb)
1 tbsp white wine vinegar per liter/quart of water
Bring a pot of cold water to a boil and then season with salt and vinegar (the vinegar helps keep the cauliflower nice and white, but it is not mandatory).
In the meantime, remove the leaves from the cauliflower and then break into large florets.
Prepare an ice bath. Once the water is boiling, blanch the cauliflower. The florets should be quite crunchy, so this should only take about 3 or 4 minutes. Once done, drain the cauliflower very well.
If preparing this dish to serve immediately, preheat the oven to 425°F (220°C).
2
Draining the Cauliflower
Place the cauliflower onto a clean kitchen towel to drain any excess water.
3
Cutting the Cauliflower
Once the cauliflower is dry, cut the florets lengthwise into about 1/4" -inch thick slices.
4
Seasoning and Preparing the Pan
Ingredients
1 to 2 tbsp unsalted butter
kosher salt (to taste)
freshly ground black pepper (to taste)
Butter an 8" x 10" -inch baking dish. Spread the cauliflower out relatively flat and then season with salt and pepper to taste.
5
Arranging the Cauliflower
Ingredients
2 to 3 tbsp unsalted butter
Place the cauliflower slices into the pan, overlapping them slightly.
Place small nobs of butter over the top of the cauliflower.
6
Grating the Parmesan Cheese
Ingredients
1/3 cup Parmigiano-Reggiano
Grate the cheese over top of everything. Up to this point, everything can be done several hours in advance. Simply place into the refrigerator until ready to bake.
7
Baking the Dish
If you haven't already, preheat the oven to 425°F (220°C).
Bake the cauliflower uncovered for approximately 30 minutes or until lightly golden. Serve hot.
16 Comments
Daniel R•
The cauliflower that I grew up on was boiled for a very long time and served with some nutmeg and butter, so I was pleasantly surprised about the firmer texture of this dish, and the crispy parmesan crust was delicious.
Next time I am planning to incorporate a little more cheese throughout, not just on top. Also I had forgotten the s&p so that went right on top, and obviously next time that needs to go on before the cheese.
This is a very good side dish, even my kids liked it :)
I have to second the previous comment about the firm texture and the crisp of the parm crust. My only complaint is that I didn't make more.
I also didn't have nutmeg, so I'll pick some up so I can try this dish again with it. Can't wait.
This was very easy to prepare. Next time I will put under the broiler to crisp up the cheese a bit more. We really enjoyed it and will definitely make again.
This was easy to prepare, and while others liked it, I thought it was just OK. I made cauliflower soup with the leftovers, adding nutmeg to stock, and topped the pureed soup with melted Fontina cheese. The roasting added a depth of flavor. Perfect.
Hi Blanca. Blanching or even quickly steaming the cauliflower gives it more tenderness but I bet you could add a 1/4 cup of veggie stock to the baking dish and cover for the first half of the cook time to skip that step. Lauren
I loved this. I rarely use cauliflower (unless I'm grilling it or making a crudite), but this was eye-opening delicious and will absolutely go into my regular rotation of side dishes! It even reminded a bit of a baked mac n' cheese. I let the dish stay in the oven for an extra 5 minutes (just to get the cheese/butter to brown up a bit) and it was perfect!
As written, the recipe is pretty bland. The second time I made it, I blanched the cauliflower in chicken stock and seasoned with white pepper, Italian seasoning, and a bit of garlic. Now it’s one of my favorites.
Hi Raiz: sounds like a great idea. You do not want to make am au gratin dish--I would use about a cup (240 cc), to cover the top, and then bake. I would add the sauce first, then the cheese. Let us know how your dish turns out. Thanks. Char
thank u char im not going to use any cheese for the recipe as im gonna cook this on days i want to go vegan.thank you everyone for the helpful advice.cheers!
I use broccoli instead as it's flavour profile is both umami and bitter which cauliflower doesn't contain. I steam the broccoli to prevent water logging by placing garlic peppercorns in the steaming liquid.once done I drain on kitchen towel then chop
as instructed by rouxbe. Then I prepare baking tray with butter.them I lay down the broccoli cut side down in a metal tray for maximum browning. Then I
add the salt for seasoning plus sugar for browning over the top of the broccoli. Then I add white pepper and garlic powder to replicate the steaming liquid flavour.now I add a ratio of half aged cheese then half mild cheese on top of that for maximum flavour and meltability. Then I bake them once done I finish with freshly squeezed lemon juice for acidity for freshness. Best broccoli bake ever.
For cauliflower cheese I find the best way to retain and enhance flavour is to steam the cauliflower, create a compound butter instead of plain butter.
