I would like your cauliflower cheese recipes please.

[notso]

My cauliflower cheese is disappointing. The one from M&S is delicious. The sauce is sort of stringy and erm cheesy where as mine is either too thin and grainy or too floury.

I do it from my head so don't have a recipe.

Only cook cauli for about 5 mins. it won't be too soggy/wet then.
Drain and then do sauce.

Butter, flour - say 3/4 heaped tablespoons ish. Stir and add milk bit by by. Slow simmer to boil and turn right down. Keep stirring until it thickens and looks lovely. use a whisk to get rid of any lumps.

If it's too thick add bit more milk. Again bit by bit til it's right.

Put a bayleaf in if you have one and a bit of pepper.

Are you adding plenty of cheese?
I added nearly all of one of those of huge 350g packs.
half of it in the sauce and then the rest on the top, so it goes golden and crispy and cheesy.

Pour on and in oven for 35 mins ish. Heaven!

I'd guess I put about 50g butter in.

Am interested to see a recipe. I'm not going to look because I think my way is intensely calorific and excessive.
But yum!

I gently cook a sliced onion in oil, then add a crushed clove of garlic and a good pinch of thyme. Add a tablespoon of flour and stir. Add a pint of milk a bit at a time while stirring. Add a goodish bit of cheese diced up and keep stirring.

While that is going on, I cook the cauli until just starting to soften.

Once the cheese is melted into the sauce, put the drained cauli in and cook for a couple of minutes.

A bit of black pepper on top finishes it off.

Spoonful of mustard is also good.

I steam the cauliflower and let it dry otherwise mine goes watery. I also put lots of cheese, mustard powder and nutmeg in the sauce.

WowOoo, yours sounds similar to mine although I put the bayleaf in with the cauliflower, what cheese do you use?

Yours sounds interesting with garli and thymedjelibeybi

Mature usually.

My children moan if I put mustard in it. It gives it a nice tang.

But, to be fair on them the last time I did this I put far too much in.

If DS1 sees me using mustard he says he doesn't like it but if he doesn't he will eat it!

What type of Cheddar, I think I need specifics I want that stringyness the M&S one has, I tried adding mozzerella but that was a fail.

Yes to steaming cauli. It retains too much water if you boil. I top mine with smoked cheddar and put under a grill once the cauli cheese is cooked. Yum.

The stringyness comes from the meted cheese on the top I think.

I use mature chedder, grade 5, and put Dijon mustard in too. I think you need to make the sauce really thick and cheesy because the water from the cauliflower leaches into it and makes it runny during the baking time. Whereas with macaroni cheese the sauce tends to get thicker.
I use 50g butter, 50g flour, 1 pint whole milk and 200g cheese, and a teaspoon of mustard.

Could you try gruyere - that is a bit stringy, but isn't mild like mozzarella.

Have you looked at ingredients on the M and S one? Steal their ideas and adapt it.

Melted cheese I mean.

The best one I ever made was using Applewood cheese, OMG, we swooned!

Applewood sounds delicious MrsDoomsPatterson.

I steam my cauli and even pat it dry.

Maybe gruyere and cheddar would work.

Am going to have to buy eat another family sized M&S one aren't I for research puposes obviously!

It really was, i implore you to try it!

I would recommend a spoonful of dry mustard in the cornflour when making the sauce - gives it a bit of a bite.

I melt butter, add plain flour and seasoning then slowly add warm milk, you really do need a whole pack of cheese, delicious!

Roast the cauliflower. Mix up with some cream or creme fraiche and lots of grated cheese. Put back in oven.

Go for a thicker bechamel sauce as the cauliflower will release some water. make sure to cook your flour and butter well before adding the milk. Put way more cheese then you would dare admit to, add some pancetta if your feeling flush. For a stringy cheese use gruyere as this will make a will make a stringier cheesy sauce but I'd mix in some cheddar too as gruyere is pricey. Then sprinkle some cheddar and Parmesan on top. :)

Thanks all for the tips, am off to Morrisons cheese counter for supplies.