Recipe: Simple cauli cheese with tarragon and walnuts
Im sure you all have highly specific cauliflower cheese garnish requirements, so go with whatever you like. I might add hazelnuts, sage, rosemary or thyme, breadcrumbs, a bit of chopped bacon or prosciutto; maybe a bit of paprika or nutmeg. I dont know about you lot, but Im heavily obsessed with tarragon and think it is just the ticket for a good bechamel. READ MORE: * Recipe: Cauliflower & broccoli crumble bake * Recipe: pasta bake with creamy cauliflower sauce * Recipes: two dishes starring tarragon, by Sam Mannering SIMPLE CAULI CHEESE WITH TARRAGON AND WALNUTS Prep time: 15 mins Cook time: 35 mins Serves: 4 Ingredients Sea salt 1 cauliflower, leaves removed 500ml milk 50g butter 50g plain flour Grated parmesan, plus extra for the top Several tbsp of grated cheddar, gouda or whatever you fancy Large handful of tarragon leaves Handful of fresh walnuts, roughly crushed Method Get a large saucepan of salted water bubbling happily over a moderately high heat. Cut the cauli into florets, pop into the simmering water and cook until tender. Preheat the oven to 200C on grill. In the meantime, make the bechamel sauce. Gently heat the milk but dont let it get to a simmer. In another saucepan over a moderate heat, melt the butter and then add the flour to create a paste. Continue to cook for 3-4 minutes so as to cook the flour, but take care not to let the mixture burn. Add a little of the hot milk and combine into the paste before gradually adding more until you are left with a thick sauce (dont add all at once as it will go lumpy). Taste and season, then add a bit of grated parmesan and cheddar (or whatever youre into), to taste you can never have too much cheese. Continue to heat gently until all is combined. Stir in the tarragon leaves. Once the cauli is just cooked, drain well and transfer to a buttered ceramic dish. Pour the bechamel over the top and scatter over the walnuts and a bit of extra parmesan. Pop into the oven for 5-10 minutes depending on how golden brown you like it, then serve while piping hot.