Roasted Broccoli & Cauliflower Cheese
Roasted broccoli & cauliflower, smothered in a rich cheese & mustard sauce then baked until golden. This is a next level roast dinner side!
Servings: 8 People
Equipment
- Large Saucepan
- Cheese Grater
- Microplane/Grater
- Large Ovenproof Dish
Ingredients
- 800 g Cauliflower Florets (Roughly 1kg Head Of Cauliflower)
- 600 g Broccoli Florets (Roughly 2x 400g Heads Of Broccoli)
- 2 tbsp Vegetable Oil
Cheese Sauce
- 70 g Unsalted Butter
- 70 g Plain Flour
- 800 g Whole Milk
- 300 g Double Cream
- 2 tsp Dijon Mustard
- 1 tsp Finely Chopped Sage (Or Thyme Or Rosemary)
- Nutmeg (To Taste)
- 150 g Mature Cheddar (Plus Extra For On Top)
- 100 g Red Leicester
- 75 g Parmesan
Instructions
Roasted Broccoli & Cauliflower
- Preheat an oven to 200°c/180°c fan (392°f/356°f).
- Place the broccoli & cauliflower florets onto a large baking tray, drizzle over the oil then season well with salt & pepper. Make sure to cut the broccoli & cauliflower into equally sized florets. They shouldn't be too small as they'll overcook!
- Roast the broccoli & cauliflower for 15-20 minutes, shaking the tray every so often, until golden brown & just starting to soften. Once cooked, set to one side.The broccoli & cauliflower will finish cooking in the sauce when we bake it!
Cheese Sauce
- Place the butter into a large saucepan then cook over a medium heat until melted.I'd recommend starting the sauce whilst the broccoli & cauliflower is in the oven.
- Once the butter has melted, stir in the flour then cook out for 1 minute, stirring constantly.
- Next, add in half the milk then whisk until smooth. Cook out until thick, whisking/stirring regularly. This will take 2-3 minutes over a medium heat.
- Pour in the remaining milk & keep cooking until thickened again.
- Pour in the double cream, keep cooking for another couple of minutes until thick then stir in the mustard, nutmeg & chopped sage. Season the sauce with salt & pepper as well.
- Turn the heat down to low, add in the grated cheeses then stir to melt. Give the sauce a taste to check the seasoning, add in more salt & pepper as needed then take the pan off the heat.
- Next, add the roasted broccoli & cauliflower into the sauce, gently stir to combine then transfer to a large ovenproof dish.
- Top the broccoli & cauliflower with extra grated cheddar then bake at 200°c/392°f for 20-25 minutes, until golden brown & bubbling.I like to use a microplane to grate the cheddar on top as I find that it melts better. I'd recommend placing the dish onto a baking tray, in case the sauce bubbles over.
- Once baked, let the broccoli & cauliflower cheese stand for 5 minutes then serve.
Notes
1. To Cook In An Aga - Roast the veg & bake the cauliflower cheese in the roasting oven, on the second from bottom set of runners. Use the simmering plate to cook the cheese sauce.
2. Floret Size - Make sure to cut the broccoli & cauliflower into equally sized florets. It's best to keep them fairly large so that they don't overcook in the sauce.
3. Scaling Down Recipe - This recipe makes a big batch of cauli cheese but can easily be scaled down by 50% to make 4 portions.
4. Cheese - Feel free to use pretty much whatever type of cheese you like for this recipe! Gruyere or comte would make a good alternative to cheddar or red Leicester. It's best to grate your own cheese instead of buying shredded.