The ideal way to use up any leftovers from your cheese plate – particularly useful to reduce waste after a festive celebration. You could swap the cauliflower out for pasta, sprouts or butter beans – whatever you have to hand. Serve with steamed greens.

Ingredients

1 cauliflower, broken into small florets, leaves roughly chopped
50g butter
50g plain flour
400ml milk
120g grated cheese of choice (ive used Red Leicester, cheddar & Stilton)
1 tbsp chutney (onion works well)I
Salt
4 or 5 crackers – I’ve used oat cakes and rosemary water biscuits
2 or 3 sprigs thyme, picked (optional)

Recipe

1. Bring a large pan of water to a rolling boil, cook the cauliflower until just tender, adding the leaves in the last minute or so. Drain
2. Melt the butter in a large pan, then stir in the flour. Cook out for 4-5 mins over a medium heat, then stir in the milk little by little adding more only when the previous splashes have incorporated. Turn off the heat and stir in the cheese and chutney. Season to taste and stir in the cauliflower
3. Meanwhile bits the crackers and thyme to a crumb in a food processor
4. Preheat oven to 200c fan. Place the cauliflower in an oven proof dish, top with a little more cheese and the cracker crumbs. Bake until golden

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This recipe is all about using what you’ve got to hand. The cheese is so adaptable to whatever you need to use up – I love to include both a cheddar or firm cheese like comté and something blue like Stilton or Roquefort.

If you don’t have crackers to use up replace them with breadcrumbs or leave them out entirely.

Swap the chutney for a good spoonful of mustard – wholegrain or Dijon would work perfectly.

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