Potato And Cauliflower Bake

🤍 Recipe Highlights

I have summarised everything that you will come to know and love (LOVE ❤) about the cauliflower potato gratin in the points below:

• Everyday ingredients: we use simple ingredients that are easy to get your hands on for the recipe. You might find that you have some of them in the pantry already, so can simply get the rest of what you need!
• Quick and easy: we do a little bit of prep work to get the potato bake into the oven and then we are hands off when it cooks. This is an easy recipe with a reasonably fast time that will tick a lot of boxes!
• Budget friendly: there is nothing in this recipe that will break the bank. Each of the ingredients are cost effective and come together to create an inexpensive side dish that you know exactly what is in it.
• Versatile: this is a flexible side dish that works well for a variety of serving ideas. The whole family will love the creamy potatoes with cheese sauce. It gives you plenty of flavor and won't over power a main dish.
• Taste and texture: from the creamy white sauce to the cheese topping, soft melt worthy potatoes and chewy cauliflower. There is a number of delightful tastes and textures in the recipe that work well as a combination.

🥗 Ingredients

The photo below is to show you everything you need to make the recipe. Please refer to the printable recipe card for specific ingredient measurements as well as detailed instructions.

As you can see the cauliflower casserole calls for:

• Salt and pepper: we use salt and a little bit of black pepper for seasoning in the recipe. Cooking salt is recommended over table salt.
• Garlic powder: a fantastic pantry staple that has a lot of flavor going for it!
• Mustard powder: the mustard powder is a complimentary flavor to the other dried seasonings. As a combination they work especially well together.
• Dried chives: from the herbs and spices section of the supermarket.
• Mozzarella cheese: this cheese is known for being stringy and melt worthy. It does not however, have a very strong flavor. Hence we use a combination of 2 cheeses for the topping. You can reduce the amount to ½ cup if you wish too (same with the colby cheese below).
• Colby cheese: this is a great melting cheese that does have a strong cheese flavor to it!
• Onion: we want to peel and dice half of a large onion and add that to the mix.
• Cream: we want to use cooking cream for the recipe. It makes it so easy to have this one ingredient and not use multiple ingredients like milk, flour and butter to create a creamy sauce!
• Cauliflower: this is a vegetable that offers a great flavor due to its creamy texture. We want to use a whole cauliflower which we discard the stem from and then roughly chop the rest into pieces.
• Potatoes: we want to use regular washed potatoes for the recipe. We simply need to peel them and then use a mandolin to finely slice them.

Tasty Tip: I like to provide you with a number of substitutions and variations giving you an array of options when making the recipe. If in doubt of any of the above ingredients, or wanting alternatives, read this section (further below) before jumping into the instructions on how to make the recipe which are coming next 😉👌.

🍳 Instructions

Here are the step by step instructions to make the potato and cauliflower gratin. We start by peeling and slicing the potatoes as you see in the photos below. You can also use this time to spray a large baking dish (casserole dish) with cooking spray.

• Peel the potatoes (Photo 1)
• Slice the potatoes (Photo 2)
• Gather the seasonings for the sauce (Photo 3)
• Add them to the cream (Photo 4)

👩‍🍳 How to Make Potato And Cauliflower Bake

To make the potato and cauliflower bake we start by preparing the potatoes. Simply use a vegetable peeler to peel the skin from each (discard) and once down then use a mandolin to thinly slice each of the potatoes. Once done the potatoes can be set aside whilst we make the creamy sauce.

Next we gather the mustard powder, dried chives, garlic powder, salt and pepper. Then we add these to the cream and stir to combine as you see in the photos above.

• Chop the cauliflower (Photo 5)
• Add the potatoes to a large mixing bowl (Photo 6)
• Add the diced onion (Photo 7)
• Then add the cauliflower pieces (Photo 8)

Next we want to use a knife and chopping board to roughly chop the cauliflower into florets or chunky pieces like you see in the photos above.

Once done you can add the thinly sliced potato pieces, diced onion and the cauliflower florets to a large bowl. Then stir to combine the 3 vegetables.

• Stir to combine (Photo 9)
• Add seasoned cream (Photo 10)
• Stir to mix together (Photo 11)
• Transfer into a baking dish (Photo 12)

Next pour the seasoned cream sauce over the vegetables like you see in the photos above and when you have, stir till they are combined.

Then transfer the cauliflower potato mixture into a large oiled baking dish.

Once done, you can place the baking dish into a preheated oven and let it cook for 50 mins.

When it has, use oven mitts to remove it from the oven and place it onto a heatproof surface.

• Add the 1st of the cheeses (Photo 13)

Now sprinkle the 1st of the 2 types of cheese over the top of the baked potato and cauliflower gratin as you see me about to do in the photo above.

Then do the same with the 2nd type of cheese as you see me having done in the photo below 😉👌.

• Add the 2nd cheese and bake (Photo 14)

Once you have added both cheese types to the top of the baked cauliflower dish you can return it to the oven.

It will need around 10 minutes during which time the cheese will melt and the surface of the potato bake turn a lovely shade of golden brown.

All up from start to cooked, the potato and cauliflower bake will take 1 hour in the oven 😉👍.

🍽 Serving Suggestions

When it comes to serving your baked cauliflower and potatoes you are practically unlimited in terms of how, with what and for what occasion.

It is not a complete meal in any sense but offers the perfect side dish with creamy sauce and cheese topping.

It will work especially well with meaty mains like the Roast Pork Shoulder, Greek Leg Of Lamb, Greek Lamb Shanks or the Pulled Beef Brisket.

You can also use them in place of the polenta in dishes like the Beef Osso Bucco, Lamb Osso Bucco or the Pork Osso Bucco 😉👍.

For rib pairings try the cauliflower potato bake with the Beef Ribs, Sticky Pork Ribs, Lamb Ribs or the Chicken Ribs.

👍 How to Guide

How to Store

Store leftovers of the potato and cauliflower bake in the baking dish with cling wrap pulled tightly over the top. Or transfer leftovers to an airtight container. Then refrigerate. Leftovers need to be heated before being consumed.

How to Freeze

Creamy sauces can have mixed results when frozen and then reheated. For this reason I don't recommend freezing large portions of the potato bake. You can however, freeze smaller portions alongside meaty mains and in sealed, airtight containers.

How to Reheat

Add leftovers to a bowl and cover with plastic wrap. Then heat using high temperature in the microwave until warmed through.

For frozen portions fully thaw (in the fridge or on the bench) then reheat using the above microwave method.

😉 Substitutions and Variations

Here are my sub ins and outs that you might be thinking about as you read the post and I will tell you if I think they will work or why they won't:

• If you want to use onion powder for flavor and omit the diced onion you can.
• Tasty cheese or cheddar cheese can be used in place of the colby cheese.
• Parmesan cheese or pecorino romano are both bold in flavor. They can be used, however, bear in mind that your 'cheese topping' won't appear as thick and cheesy as both of these are known more for their flavor than their cheese melty ooey gooeyness 😂👍.
• Or if you want to use a store bought cheese blend as opposed to grating your own cheese you can.
• You can add some diced cooked bacon if you wish (absorb the excess oil with paper towel before adding to the vegetables in the mixing bowl).
• In place of the parsley as a garnish fresh chives or thinly sliced green onions will work well.
• For a non cheese topping you can use bread crumbs (panko are recommended). Follow the same instructions to cook the potatoes, then sprinkle a layer of these over the top of the dish then return it to the oven until they are toasted and golden in colour.

💡 Tasty Tips

Here are my top tips and tricks that I want to share with you so that you master the recipe from the get go:

• There is no need to cook either the potatoes or the cauliflower before the dish goes into the oven. Each of the vegetables softens and cooks during the 50 minute cook time before we add the cheese topping.
• We want the potatoes to be sliced thinly so that they cook according to the specified cook time. If you don't have a mandolin (vegetable slicer with blade) you can use a knife. If doing so, focus on thin slices of potato rather than thick slices.
• For the same reason above I don't use potato chunks for the recipe. As they are thicker they take longer to cook through. If you want to do potato cubes in place of the slices, you can. However, bear in mind that these may take longer to cook through.
• We do want to use the stems and florets of the cauliflower (all the white parts) and their size chopped up can be up to you. Larger pieces will give more cauliflower flavor to the bite whereas smaller pieces will be flavored more with the potato taste.
• If you do want to grate your own cheese for the topping but don't want to use a hand grater you can use the shredder blade on your food processor. It makes the task super quick and easy!
• There is no need to use aluminium foil over the cauliflower dish. We want to bake it uncovered the entire time.
• We do want to rest the cauliflower and potato bake once out of the oven as the sauce will thicken as the temperature of the dish drops. 10 minutes will be enough time and still result in warm potato bake.
• If potatoes are your favorite side dish then you might also like the Creamy Garlic Potatoes, Skin on Roast Potatoes, Duck Fat Roast Potatoes or the Garlic Butter Potatoes 😉👌.

🤓 Frequently Asked Questions

How do you keep cauliflower from getting soggy?

For this recipe it is important to not cook the cauliflower in water before adding it to the potatoes. If you do the dish will become watery and soggy.

Should you wash cauliflower before baking?

It is not essential to wash cauliflower before baking, however if the top is looking a bit dirty you can rinse it then pat it dry with paper towel.

How do you know when cauliflower is done?

The cauliflower will be done when a skewer or fork inserted into the dish slides straight through with no resistance. If the fork meets a very firm cauliflower floret it should be baked for a little longer until these soften.

Can I make this recipe in advance?

Yes you can. Cook the cauliflower and potato bake according to the recipe instructions. Then let it cool. Once cooled, pull a layer of cling wrap over the top of the dish and then refrigerate it. When ready to serve, remove it from the oven and let it sit till the baking dish no longer feels cold. Then pop the dish back into a moderate oven for 20 minutes or until heated throughout.

😍 More Easy Side Dishes

If you prefer what's on the side to the main event then you have come to the right place! These dishes offer a wide variety of taste and textures as well as being suitable for a variety of occasions:

• Tortilla Garlic Bread
• Basmati Fried Rice
• Turkish Garlic Bread
• Chorizo Fried Rice
• Horseradish Mashed Potatoes
• Pork Belly Fried Rice

It is time to get our cauliflower on my friend! You can also find all of my side dishes or roast potato recipes in the one spot!

Adrianne

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