Cauliflower and Cheese Croquettes

Serving Size: 6

INGREDIENTS

• 50g butter
• 60g flour
• 500ml milk
• 2 cloves garlic, crushed (optional)
• 1 small head of broccoli (about 400g) – fresh or frozen, cut into florets
• 1 medium head of cauliflower (about 900g)
• 1T Dijon mustard
• pinch of nutmeg
• 70g cheese (mature Cheddar, Gruyere)
• 1/4 cup breadcrumbs mixed with a glug of olive oil
• 2 sprigs of fresh thyme, leaves removed
• 2 eggs, beaten
• extra breadcrumbs for coating

INSTRUCTIONS

Make a white sauce with the butter, flour and milk (adding the garlic at the beginning) and whisk until it is smooth in a pot on the Simmering Plate and the flour is cooked through. Season with salt, pepper and the pinch of nutmeg.

Stir through the Dijon mustard and add the broccoli.

Continue to cook this for about 20 minutes and until the broccoli is softened and breaking apart.

Add the cheese and allow this to melt in.

Using a hand held blender process the broccoli and cheese sauce until smooth adding a little extra milk if necessary.

In an appropriately sized oven proof dish, arrange the head of cauliflower which you have broken into large florets.

Pour over the cheese sauce.

Mix the olive oil with the bread crumbs and thyme leaves and scatter this over the top.

Bake on the Baking oven for 1 hour until golden brown.

Once the cauliflower cheese has cooled down, lightly mash it up, cutting the larger florets, and roll them into balls.

Roll these in breadcrumbs, then dip and coat lightly in beaten egg, and again roll them in the breadcrumbs and set aside.

Heat a large pot of oil on the Simmering Plate, allow this to reach a temperature of 180 C / 350 F, and then fry the croquettes in batches until golden brown, turning once.

Drain on kitchen paper and serve immediately while they are still warm and crunchy. Caper berries are a wonderful and tart garnish to accompany these.

Recipe and images from drizzleanddip.com/2013/12/09/cauliflower-and-cheese-croquettes