Cauliflower au Gratin with an Almond Crust

I've been lately on a cauliflower kick. My family enjoys eating it and if I can cook veggies that everyone loves, heck ya I'll be making it often!

Here's a recipe that I found at Taste and See. I love gratins and anything with a crunch. This combines both. I have to warn you to be careful toward the end. You can easily burn the almonds if you are not checking it often. Sometimes you can't always multitask. Oops!

Ingredients

1  head    Cauliflower, cut into small florets

1/4 cup    Butter

2  cloves  Garlic, minced

1  small    Onion, chopped

2  tbsp     Unbleached all-purpose flour

2  tsp       Fresh thyme, chopped

1/2 tsp     Salt (I upped the amount to 1 tsp)

1/2 cup    Heavy cream

1 cup       Gruere cheese, shredded (I used Fontina since I didn't have Gruere)

2/3 cup    Panko

1/4 cup    Almonds, sliced

1/4 cup    Parmesan cheese, shredded

Preheat oven to 400.

In a large skillet, melt the butter over medium high heat. Add the cauliflower, onions and garlic and cook for about 10 minutes.

Sprinkle with flour, thyme and salt. Stir well and remove from heat.

Spoon the mixture into a baking dish (I used a 8x8) and drizzle with cream. Sprinkle the cheese, panko and sliced almonds. Bake for about 18 minutes until it's golden. At 15 minutes, check the almonds. Make sure they are not too brown.

It's a great side dish but make sure you don't skimp on the seasonings or you'll have a bland dish. I'm sure the gruere would make it taste even better. Next time.

Bon Appetit!