Receta Cauliflower Gratin; the update
Usually this time of year I have a cellar full of butternut and acorn squash with green beans, tomatoes, zucchini and chard still growing in my potager.
This year, the potager is done and I have 4 each butternut and acorn squashes.
Pathetic…
On the other hand, that means that we get to eat other vegetables.
We get to eat vegetables that I don’t grow.
Like cauliflower.
Usually we don’t have cauliflower until February, when all the other vegetables are gone.
Like cabbage, when cooking for two cauliflower is a bit of a commitment… A third of a typical head is enough for the two of us.
Cauliflower Gratin
Total time: 60 minutes
Ingredients:
- 1/3 head cauliflower, florets broken off and sliced, 1/4 inch thick
- 3 shallots, sliced
- 8 – 10 fresh sage leaves, roughly chopped
- 2 tsp olive oil
- 2oz (60gr) Gruyère, shredded
- 1/4 cup (2oz, 60ml) chicken stock
Instructions:
Heat oil in a medium skillet over medium-high heat.
Add shallots, sage and sauté until shallots are tender about 7 minutes.
Remove from heat and set aside.
In a baking dish just large enough to hold ingredients lay 1/2 of the cauliflower
Top with the sage and shallots, then the rest of the cauliflower.
Pour the chicken stock over the top.
Sprinkle with cheese, cover with foil and bake at 400F (200C) for 35 minutes.
Remove foil and bake for 10 minutes longer, until cheese is golden.
Work continues on in the pantry.
The old cabinets are down, the walls have been painted and the insulation is on the ceiling.
He’s planning on replacing the sink (it’s beyond redemption) and the lower cabinet.
The upper cabinets were IKEA, (old) and easy to take down.
The lower cabinet is brick…. a bit more challenging….
Well, not more challenging, but a lot messier.
The heater is installed but not hooked up yet.
Fortunately, we don’t need it.
Remember, with stone walls all the wiring is on the surface of the wall.
Our weather has been beautiful.
I’ve started putting the potager to bed for the winter.
Usually we mow the lawn inside the fence with the hand mower, collecting the clippings so they aren’t tracked in on doggie paws. We mow outside the fence with the tractor and let the clippings blow where they will.
This time of year I also mow the grass outside the fence, around the potager and the house, where it’s nice grass, rather than weeds like in the main field.
The clippings get put on the potager, making a thick layer to help keep the weeds under control, decompose over the winter and get worked into the soil in spring.
Three hours of mowing has about a third of the garden covered.
I’ll top it all off with leaves in November.
If I continue to do this every year, we should have good garden soil by, oh, 2030….
If you want nutrition information for the recipe, try this site: Calorie Count
Last Updated on October 7, 2013