Butter Braised Leeks with Cauliflower Cheese Sauce

Carmelized, nutty vegetables? I’m all in. The sauce is so terrific on its own that you may want to just eat it with a spoon. This dish is a great side dish for grilled meats, but it is also terrific as a lighter main course.

Ingredients:

Cauliflower Cheese Sauce:

1 (14.4 ounce) bag of frozen cauliflower, thawed

2 cloves roasted garlic, about 2 teaspoons (see note)

½ cup vegetable broth

1/3 cup fat free half and half

¼ cup grated parmesan

1/3 cup shredded light Swiss cheese (or gruyere)

Pinch of grated nutmeg

Salt and pepper to taste

Braised Leeks:

3 leeks

1 Tablespoon light butter or margarine

1 cup vegetable broth

Directions:

For the sauce:

Place the cauliflower, roasted garlic, vegetable broth and half and half in the food processor and process until the mixture is completely smooth. Remove to a sauce pan and heat on medium low for 15 minutes, stirring often. Slowly stir in the parmesan, Swiss, and nutmeg Add salt and pepper to taste. Cook, stirring often, for another 15 minutes. Remove from heat and set aside.

For the leeks:

Trim the tops of the leeks down to where you have just a bit of light green left. Discard the tops or freeze to make veggie broth with later. Cut the root end of the leeks off-between ¼ and ½ inch should do. Slice the leeks lengthwise and run under cold water, making sure to run water between the layers to get any grit out. Dry on paper towels.

Melt the butter or margarine in a large skillet on medium heat and place the leeks cut side down. You may need to cut the leeks in half horizontally to get them to fit in your skillet. Cook for about 5 minutes or until the cut sides are just golden. Flip and cook another five minutes on the other side.

Flip the leeks back over in the skillet so the cut sides are facing down again. Add in the vegetable broth and cover the skillet (I just used foil). Reduce heat to low and cook for 20 minutes. Remove from heat.

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. 

Flip the leeks once more so the cut sides are facing up. Spoon some (about 1 cup) of the cauliflower cheese sauce over the leeks.. Place the skillet in the pre-heated oven for 15 minutes. Crack the oven door open and turn the heat to broil Broil for 3 minutes to make the top crispy. Remove and serve warm. I added a bit of extra virgin olive oil and fresh parsley to the top, but garnishes are totally optional. 

Refrigerate any leftover cauliflower sauce to use on pasta, veggies or whatever you would like.

Note: to make roasted garlic, simply cut the top off of a whole head of garlic, drizzle with olive oil and place on two layers of heavy duty foil. Pull the edges of the foil up and twist to make a neat little package. Preheat the oven to 400 and cook for 20-25 minutes. You will know they are done if you open the package and the top of the head is golden and the whole thing is soft and fragrant. Let cool until you can touch the garlic safely and then just squeeze out what you need. Store the leftovers and use like a spread on crackers or toasted pieces of baguette.