This cauliflower and mushroom gratin has a savory base and a savory-sweet crumble topping that’s so satisfying and delicious, this is the only way you’ll want to eat cauliflower. Almost. The ingredients in the cauliflower bake sound strange, but trust me, this works.
I was leafing through The Ottolenghi Cookbook a few weeks ago and kept being drawn to one photograph within the multitude of gorgeous food-porn dripping pages. It was a gratin of sorts and it played tricks with my eyes.
The gratin was actually made of fennel with a tempting crumble and a scattering of cherry tomatoes, but every time I looked I could swear I was seeing cauliflower. Weird, right? I’m sure that his recipe is utterly swoon-worthy, but I couldn’t get the cauliflower out of my mind, so I used that picture for inspiration and put together the combination that I thought I was seeing.
And my minds eye saw an autumnal or wintry dish with cauliflower florets, onions, sauteed mushrooms, and aromatic sage and garlic. Sounds pretty good, doesn’t it?
In Ottolenghi”s recipe, he topped his gratin with a crumble – a subtly sweet crumble. I wasn’t so sure how that would work with cauliflower and mushrooms.
I debated other more pedestrian toppings like italian breadcrumbs or panko, even corn flakes, but I kept coming back to his crumble. So I scaled his recipe way down and sprinkled it over the veg along with a handful of grape tomatoes.
If this is weirding you out, I completely understand. If I were just reading this description<, I’d be scrunching my nose and shaking my head, “no thank you, very much”. I hope the pictures give you more of a sense of how utterly sublimethis is. It’s lush and tender with flavor pops from those roasted tomatoes and earthy sage — not to mention the crumble – that feint hint of sweet makes this gratin positively indulgent. Are you sold, yet?
More Savory Gratins:
- Kale Barley & Mushroom Gratin
- Potato Ham Au Gratin
- Healthy Mac and Cheese (Kale and Butternut Squash Gratin)
- Cauliflower Mustard Au Gratin
- Creamy Chayote Gratin
- Cheesy Tomato Egg Gratin
- Twice Baked Sweet Potato Gratin
Cauliflower and Mushroom Gratin
INGREDIENTS:
- 3 tablespoons olive oil divided
- 8 ounces crimini mushrooms sliced
- 4 fresh sage leaves minced
- 3 cloves garlic minced
- 1 small onion peeled and thinly sliced root to tip
- 4 cups cauliflower cut into bite sized florets
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
- ¼ teaspoon white pepper
- ¼ cup parmesan cheese grated
- ½ cup vegetable broth
- ¼ cup cream
- 1 cup cherry tomatoes
for the crumble
- ⅓ cup flour
- 1 tablespoon sugar
- 2 tablespoons butter cut into 1/4″ dice
- ¼ cup parmesan cheese grated
- 1 teaspoon freshly chopped sage
for garnish
- fresh parsley chopped
- small sage leaves
- 1/4-1/2 teaspoon lemon zest
DIRECTIONS:
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
Make the crumble
- In a small bowl combine the flour, sugar and butter. Use your fingertips to blend the ingredients together until they form small crumbles and holds together when you pinch some between your thumb and forefinger. Add the parmesan and sage and toss to combine. Set aside.
- Heat 1 tablespoon olive oil in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Add the mushrooms and sauté until they’ve given up their liquid and begin to brown, 5-6 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add garlic and sage and cook for 30-40 seconds until fragrant. Remove pan from heat and cover with a tight fitting lid – to steam and soften the sage and garlic, without browning. Set aside.
- In a large bowl combine the cauliflower and onions. Add the remaining 2 tablespoons olive oil, salt and pepper and toss to coat. Add the mushrooms and parmesan cheese and toss to distribute the ingredients evenly. Transfer the vegetables into a small square or rectangular casserole dish, about 8″ x 8″.
- Stir together the broth and cream and pour over the vegetables. Sprinkle the crumble evenly over the gratin. Cover the gratin with tin foil and bake for 45 minutes, until cauliflower and onions are very tender. Remove the foil and dot the top of the gratin with cherry tomatoes. Bake for an additional 15-20 minutes until tomatoes pop and slump.
- While gratin is still warm sprinkle with parsley, a few small sage leaves and lemon zest. Serve.
NUTRITION:
Don’t Forget To “Pin It” For Later!
Fresh sage is a great thing. I can imagine the scent and taste. Wonderful!
Cauliflower is one of my favorite veggies, looking forward to try your recipe ! 🙂
Oh, Lisa, I am totally sold 🙂 Nowadays my husband obsessed with mushroom, I can see totally he will love this one. Thanks for sharing this recipe.
I absolutely love cauliflower! Gotta try this!
Thanks, Marsha! Let me know how you like it!
Yum! Delicious comfort food, and a good way to sneak in some extra veggies too.
Count me in I love the sound of this! And so happy you swapped that fennel out for cauliflower – I’m not a huge fennel fan.Love those cherry tomatoes on top too!
I love Ottolenghi, and every time I flip through the cookbook I want to make a dish from it too!
Absolutely gorgeous photos! This gratin looks like such a great side dish. Love how packed it is with vegetables.
The streusel topping is outrageous, too!
I love the fresh herbs and lemon zest on top, definitely kicks it up a notch!
it is better if you do not pre cook the mushrooms
Really? I would have thought that the mushrooms would give off more of their liquid if they were uncooked. That’s interesting.
Looks delicious!
It’s a good one!
Just wondering how you would cut down on the excess of liquid that appears to collect in the bottom of the dish? Thanks.
Actually, it’s not that much liquid – the broth and a little cream for richness, but it’s necessary to steam the cauliflower. You could probably do the same thing with potatoes and they would soak up the liquid. Let me know…
Oh this looks amazing! I am such a gratin fan. Lovely x
I am obsessed with cauliflower – can’t wait to give this a try!
Beautiful side dish! I love cauliflower gratin so anxious to try this version!