The ‘nationality’ of this dish’s cuisine is alleged to be British. But it could be from any number of Eur-opean traditions. What I love most about it is… If you don’t tell your family what’s in it, they won’t even know they’re eating cauliflower!
One of those dishes… Just looking at it, you know you
want to eat the whole thing, by yourself, right now!
This is also one of those dishes that proves folks who say British cuisine is dull or boring or uninter-esting have never really had it at its best! Even I thought this must be a French dish, at first…
All in the ‘crust’
I’ll admit, I’m, a sucker for anything (within reason) enrobed, cradled, rolled, wrapped or otherwise embraced by fillo pastry. But this absolutely gorgeous dish may be the easiest, yet most elegant filo ‘pie’ recipe I’ve ever encountered.
One glance tells me I’m getting big bites of the lightest, flakiest, butteriest pastry ever created. I can tell from the bubbly, golden brown crust – not to mention the delicate aroma – that there’s cheese involved. And I know, even without tasting, I’ll be back for seconds!
What’s not immediately apparent is, this potential prize winning recipe takes only minutes to put together and uses readily available, not-too-costly ingredients. It’s a splurge nutrition- and health-wise. But I contend that the sins of the pastry, butter and cheddar cheese are more than offset by the virtues of the cauliflower.
What you do
Follow the procedure generally as laid out in the source recipe. Faithful readers will already know well how to prepare the filo pastry, carefully laying out the sheets and brushing melted butter onto each succeeding layer.
They’ll also know all about making a Béchamel, or ‘white’ sauce, which is transformed into a rich, creamy cheese sauce with the addition of the cheddar. Use a nice, old, well-aged cheddar for best flavour. And don’t forget a pinch/dab of dry/prepared mustard! That’s the secret to a really superior cheese sauce.
It takes a mere 10 minutes or so to put it all together, exclusive of roasting the cauliflower. But don’t skip this step. Or the cauliflower won’t be properly cooked through. And you’ll be cheating yourself of gobs of great ‘roasted’ flavour.
Tips…
The source recipe calls for a lot of mustard. I would cut the recommended amount in half right away. Another time, I might use even less. You don’t want to drown the cheese in aggressive, mustardy tang. Crumbly, aged cheddar has plenty of zip and umami heartiness to carry the dish with great elegance and charm.
The parsley is a traditional British garnish. But you might like to experiment with something different. I haven’t tried these options yet, but I’m going to next time I make this dish… Sprinkle chopped green olives or cashews on the piping hot pie just before serving. Or serve on the side so diners can choose their own enhancement(s).
I also love my Cheese Guy’s suggestion of a little sweetish chutney (like Mango) on the side, for a floral, fruity complement to the nippy cheddar. My own inclination would be to say ‘use sparingly’. But it’ll be on the side and, therefore, up to each diner to regulate their personal ‘dose’.
My take
Once you’ve made this dish more or less as the source recipe recommends.. You can adapt it freely to any kind of filling that goes well with matir cheddar cheese. Broccoli is a natural, So is asparagus. And brussells sprouts! Any of those would benefit from the stipulated pan roasting prior to assembling the pie. It would also be a great way to use up leftovers. The ‘formula’ lends itself to vegetarian or meat fillings…
However you use it, I predict you’ll want add this particular ‘procedure’ to your own go-to hip-pocket book of Chef’s Secrets!
~Maggie J.