Day 324: a Sunday stalwart

As a child, one of the best things about Sundays for me was getting to lick/wipe/mop the saucepan when Mum was making a cauliflower cheese, and then chiselling off the crunchy bits - and the sticky, extra-concentrate cheese sauce accumulations - from the dish at the end of the meal. I’m not ready to pass this privilege on to my kids yet and still take great pleasure in both (keeping them all to myself, obvs).

I’ve been making cauliflower cheese from scratch since I was about 16 years old (*shudders when realises that was 20 years ago*) - and even made a campfire version while trekking in the Himalayas (an experience I’ll treasure forever) - but I very happily took guidance from Nigella last Sunday on this one. Day 324 is Nigella’s Red Leicester Cauliflower Cheese.

Nigella’s Red Leicester Cauliflower Cheese

Nigella’s Red Leicester Cauliflower Cheese

Nigella’s Red Leicester Cauliflower Cheese

I fished out the bay leaves from the cauli water and let them steep in the milk, in a jug, for an hour or so before making the sauce; I feel like they still had a bit more left in them to offer.

Served alongside roast topside of beef, dripping-roasted potatoes and Brussels sprouts tossed in a Bagna Càuda butter (see Nigella Summer for butter recipe).