Cauliflower CheeseA good value family favourite. |
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based on 421 reviews
Ingredients for 4
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| Ingredients | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | head | cauliflower | (500 grams) |
| 300 | grams | fusili | |
| 200 | grams | cheddar cheese | |
| 120 | grams | ham (cooked, sliced) | |
| 50 | grams | butter | |
| 50 | grams | plain flour | |
| 1 | teaspoon | salt | (6 grams) |
| 1/8 | teaspoon | ground black pepper | (0.4 grams) |
| 1/8 | teaspoon | nutmeg, grated | (0.2 grams) |
| 1000 | mls | milk | |
| 1 1/2 | teaspoon | olive oil | (8 mls) |
Method
Preparation time: 60 minutes. See step-by-step instructions below.
Best with a salad and a glass of wine.
Step-by-Step Instructions
 | Here is our lovely cauliflower - straight from my local famer's market! Take off the green leaves and cut back the stem. This one should be about right for four people. |
 | Now cut off the individual roses and wash them in cold water. |
 | Then cut the remaining stem into 5mm thick slices - don't waste it. |
 | Put the cauliflower into a sizeable saucepan, add some salt and about 1cm / 1/2 inch of water. Bring to a boil and steam the cauliflower with the lid closed for about 9 minutes. |
 | In the meantime, bring the water for the pasta to a boil (you should use pasta weight x 10 amounts of water), add half of the salt and the olive oil. Add the pasta and boil until "al dente" - follow the instructions on your pasta package. |
 | Whilst the cauliflower is steaming and your pasta is boiling, grate your cheese with a coarse grater. |
 | Put the cauliflower into an oven-proof dish that is big enough. You can cut the roses into 2 or 3 parts if they are too big - this is especially important if you have children as they won't like large chunks of cauliflower! |
 | When the pasta is done, drain is in a sieve and add it to the dish with the cauliflower. Distribute the pasta and the cauliflower evenly. |
 | Now cut your ham into squares (I'm using smoked ham here, which also works well).Pre-heat the oven to 180 degrees Celsius / 350 Fahrenheit / Gas Mark 4 |
 | Time to make the white sauce. Melt the butter in a saucepan. |
 | When the butter has melted, add the flour and stir vigorously with a whisk or a wooden spoon. |
 | Whisk until the butter/flour mixture is nice and even and changes colour slightly. |
 | Now add small amounts of milk, whisk again until the mixture thickens, and add more milk. You will want your hob on a fairly high setting for this and proceed quickly. |
 | Once all the milk is added, bring to a boil again. |
 | Add salt, pepper and nutmeg. Take it easy on the salt as we will add cheese later. Also, the ham will contain a fair amount of salt ... |
 | Now add half the grated cheese and whisk until the cheese has dissolved. Take the saucepan off the hob. |
 | Spread the ham on top of the cauliflower and pasta. |
 | Then add your white sauce - distribute it evenly. |
 | Last but not least, distribute the other half of the grated cheese on top. Put the dish into your pre-heated oven and bake for 30 minutes (or until it looks like in the picture below - don't burn it :-). |
| Voila - your finished cauliflower cheese. Very popular with my kids! |