This Potato And Cauliflower Bake or also called Cauliflower Au Gratin is an easy comfort food recipe that has quickly become one of the favorites in my house. It creamy, cheesy and such a delicious side dish for holidays as well as for Sunday night dinner.
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As you have probably noticed I'm obsessed with French food and particularly Gratins. Recently I've been making them non-stop.
My Eggplant Gratin, Potato Zucchini Gratin or Chicken, Potato and Bacon Gratin are among my most popular recipes at home for a reason.
Whenever I have some kind of celebration at my house, I make sure to prepare one of those Gratins and they always disappear quickly.
Baked to their bubbly and crispy perfection, gratins are so satisfying and make a perfect side dish for any occasion.
My today's recipe of Potato And Cauliflower Bake is inspired by Ina Garten's Cauliflower Au Gratin.
I first made it a few years ago and immediately fell in love with the simplicity of preparation process and the excellent taste of the dish.
I love Ina's original version of the recipe but I decided to add potatoes for more volume and nutrition.
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📋 Ingredients
- cauliflower - make sure to cut into the even-sized florets and wash really well before cooking
- potatoes - although original Ina Garten's recipe doesn't have potatoes, I found that they make this vegetarian dish even more satisfying hence suitable for serving as a main dish
- butter - we'll need it for the roux
- flour - also needed for the roux. If you're on Gluten-Free diet, you can substitute with All-purpose GF flour
- milk - I used whole milk
- cheeses - my favorite combo is Parmesan and Gruyere. See below for other cheese suggestions
- nutmeg - we'll use just a pinch of it, but it will contribute to a delicious nutty flavor of this casserole
- Panko breadcrumbs - for the crunchy top layer. You can use GF breadcrumbs if you want
🔪 Instructions
1. Precook the vegetables
Preheat the oven to 375 F.
Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Add 1 teaspoon of salt, cauliflower florets and potatoes and cook on a medium heat for 7 minutes. Drain.
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2. Prepare the white sauce
In a medium saucepan and over medium heat, melt 2 tablespoons of butter, add flour and whisk to combine until no lumps remain.
Add warm milk, stirring constantly until the sauce thickens.
Remove pan from the heat. Add the remaining ¼ teaspoon of salt, pepper, ¼ cup of Gruyere cheese, Parmesan and nutmeg. Give it a whisk. Give sauce a taste and add more salt if needed.
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At this point you should have a silky smooth white sauce that works great in so many recipes.
3. Assemble Gratin
Transfer cooked cauliflower and potatoes into the 8 by 11 inches baking dish. Cover with a white sauce and carefully mix to combine the ingredients.
Sprinkle Panko breadcrumbs, drizzle with the remaining 2 tablespoon of melted butter and sprinkle ¼ cup of Gruyere on top of the gratin.
4. Bake
Bake for 25 to 30 minutes until vegetables are tender.
Turn on the broiler and bake for 2-3 minutes until top of the gratin is golden brown. Yum!
🧀 Cheese suggestions
For this cauliflower potato cheese bake, I really recommend Swiss Gruyere cheese. It has a wonderful nutty aroma and texture and works great in any recipe.
If you can't find Gruyere, any other hard cheese with distinctive flavor will work. Here are some of my suggestions:
- Parmijiano-Reggiano
- Grana Padano
- Aged Gouda
- Aged Cheddar
- Aged Provolone
💭 Top tip
What I really like about this cauliflower potato bake or any other gratins is that you can make them ahead of time, which is very convenient for Thanksgiving or Christmas.
Just assemble everything in a baking dish, cover with a foil and store in a fridge for a few hours or even overnight until you're ready to bake it.
🍴 Pairing suggestions
- Greek Lemon Oregano Chicken - dish with minimal ingredients but so much flavor
- Pork Tenderloin With Seared Peaches - perfect for busy weeknight meal
- Steak Chateaubriand - French classic ready in under 30 minutes
♨️ Storing And Reheating
This creamy cauliflower and potato casserole should be stored covered in a refrigerator for 1 or 2 days.
To reheat, preheat the oven to 350F. Pop Cauliflower Au Gratin in the oven and bake uncovered for 20-30 minutes until it's hot throughout.
If you want to see a quick overview of the recipe, please check out my Cauliflower Gratin web-story.
If you make this recipe, please leave me a comment below and rate it. I always appreciate the feedback. Also, you can follow me on Facebook, Instagram, or Pinterest.
📖 Recipe
Cauliflower Au Gratin
Ingredients
- 1 ½ lb cauliflower head cut into small florets
- 1 lb potatoes, red or yellow peeled and cubed
- 4 tablespoon butter divided
- 2 tablespoon flour
- 1 ½ c warm milk
- ½ c Gruyere cheese grated
- ¼ c Parmesan cheese grated
- ¼ teaspoon grated nutmeg
- ⅓ c Panko breadcrumbs
- 1 ¼ teaspoon salt
- ¼ tap pepper
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 375 F.
- Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Add 1 teaspoon of salt, cauliflower florets and potatoes and cook on a medium heat for 7 minutes. Drain.
- In a medium saucepan over medium heat, melt 2 tablespoons of butter, add flour and whisk to combine. Add warm milk, stirring constantly until the sauce thickens.
- Remove pan from the heat. Add the remaining ¼ teaspoon of salt, pepper, ¼ cup of Gruyere cheese, Parmesan and nutmeg. Give it a taste and add more salt if needed.
- Transfer cauliflower and potatoes into the 8 by 11 inches baking dish. Cover with a sauce and carefully mix to combine the ingredients.
- Sprinkle Panko and the remaining ¼ cup of Gruyere on top of the gratin and drizzle with 2 tablespoon of melted butter.
- Bake for 25 to 30 minutes until vegetables are tender.Turn on the broiler and bake for 2-3 minutes until top of the gratin is golden brown.
- Serve immediately.
Notes
Nutrition
Noush says
I made a dairy free version of this with almond milk and plant based cheddar. I added some vanilla essence and aioli and it was amazing! Great way to use up potatoes and cauliflower. Might eat some more now!
Iryna says
Noush, thank you so much for your comment and 5-star rating! I've never tried this recipe with dairy-free cheese and sauce so it's good to know it turned out delicious.
Grace von Moltyn says
Hi, I made this recipe but instead of using milk for the roux, I used the boiled water from the cauliflower & potatoes. I also added a pinch of onion powder to the salt,pepper,nutmeg. It was absolutely delicious and definitely would serve to my guests with some chicken or meat on the side.
Iryna says
Grace, thank you for your comment! I'm happy that you liked this recipe!
EASYFOODSMITH says
It looks so comforting and delicious.
Ezgi says
I have just made it and it was delicious. The amount of the sauce was very good. This will definitely be my to go recipe. We ate the whole thing with my husband as main dish, absolutely amazing.
Iryna says
Ezgi, thank you so much for your comment and 5 star review! I'm happy you and your husband enjoyed this recipe!