Cauliflower au Gratin (vegan)

This healthy, dairy free version of cauliflower au gratin is a great dish for your next dinner party. It’s creamy, garlicky, and buttery without being too heavy. If you like to have extra sauce then you can easily double the butter, almond milk, flour, and nutritional yeast used to make the sauce. The nutritional yeast gives this dish it’s cheesy, nutty flavor. You won’t miss the cheese with this secret ingredient. The nutmeg adds a warm flavor and fragrance. This is comfort food with less guilt. It’s super easy and quick to make and contains less than 10 ingredients. As always, let me know how it turns out by tagging @thefriendlyepicurean on social media!

Cauliflower au Gratin

Servings: 4
Time: 1 hr
Difficulty: easy
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Ingredients

1 large head of cauliflower, cut into florets (about 2 lbs)
2 tbs vegan butter such as Earth Balance (plus enough to grease baking dish)
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 cup unsweetened almond milk
1/4 cup plus 1 tbs nutritional yeast, divided
1 tbs flour
1/4 cup bread crumbs
1/8 tsp ground nutmeg
1/4 tsp pepper
1/8 tsp salt (more to taste)

Directions

Preheat oven to 350F. Grease a 11″ x 8″ baking dish with vegan butter and set aside. Add about 2″ of water to a large stockpot. Heat on medium heat until water is boiling. Place cauliflower into a steamer basket. Place steamer basket on top of stockpot and steam for about 8 minutes or until cauliflower is soft the whole way through. Or, place cauliflower in a large stockpot and cover with water. Bring to boil and cook for about 5-6 minutes or until cauliflower is soft the whole way through. Drain excess water from cauliflower and place in greased baking dish. Next, heat butter on low-medium heat in a small saucepan. Add garlic, salt, pepper, and nutmeg and cook for about 3 minutes. Add flour and stir. Then add almond milk and stir vigorously for 1-2 minutes with a spatula or heat safe whisk to remove any lumps of flour. Next, add nutritional yeast and continue to stir vigorously to remove any lumps. Simmer for about 3-4 minutes. Sauce should begin to thicken and reduce. Remove from heat and pour over cauliflower. Toss with a spatula to make sure cauliflower is coated evenly. Sprinkle with bread crumbs and remaining 1 tbs nutritional yeast. Bake at 350F for about 30-35 minutes. May store in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 1-2 days.

Nutrition Information: