Cauliflower au Gratin

With Canadian Thanksgiving now past, and American Thanksgiving just two weeks away, it’s time to think about some easy and interesting ways to prepare vegetables that work well on any festive table. You’ll find many other ideas for special-occasion veggies indexed under Side Dish. I made this tasty cauliflower dish during our recent vacation getaway. The recipe comes from The Encyclopedia of Creative Cooking, edited by Charlotte Turgeon (Ottenheimer Publishers Inc., 1982). I’ve taken the liberty of modifying the recipe’s ingredients and instructions very slightly.

Cauliflower au Gratin:

1 medium head cauliflower
Salt and pepper, to taste
1 c. (250 mL) sour cream
1 c. (250 mL) shredded cheddar
2 tsp. (10 mL) toasted sesame seeds or 1 tbsp. (15 mL) dry bread crumbs

Preheat oven to 350 deg. F. Trim leaves and stalks from cauliflower. Slice in half, cutting away and removing core. Break head into medium-sized florets. Rinse and cook 10 min., covered, in small amount of boiling, lightly salted water. Drain. Add half florets to spray-greased 1 qt. (1 L) casserole dish. Season to taste. Spoon on half sour cream, half shredded cheddar, and half sesame seeds or crumbs. Repeat layering. Bake 5 min., until cheese melts and cauliflower has heated through. If made in advance and chilled, casserole should be brought to room temperature before baking. Serves 6.

Trim away leaves, stalks, and core.

Break into florets. Cover and cook 10 min.

Drain.

Place half cauliflower in spray-greased casserole 
dish. Spoon with half sour cream, half cheese,  
 and half sesame seeds or crumbs. Repeat.

Bake at 350 deg. F. until cheese melts.

Serve straight from the oven, hot and tasty!