Roast Cauliflower and Pancetta Gratin

By Kelley on May 12, 2014 | Main Dish, Sides, Vegetables Jump To Recipe

Roast cauliflower, crispy pancetta, garlic and sharp white cheddar make an uber tasty gratin that’s not only in season and full of flavor but you can have it on the table in 30 minutes.

First things first. I hope all you mamas out there had a wonderful Mother’s Day. Ours was spent mostly on the couch (no complaints here) as it was raining and snowing most of the day. After an early morning visit with my grandma and mom, the boys and I kept the sofa company and read books, watched tv and and did a whole lotta nothing. I got some awesome homemade cards, a lovely potted plant and an I.O.U for a gift certificate of my choice. I’m thinking the spa. You can never go wrong with the spa, am I right?

I eat with my eyes. I’m always drawn to beautiful food and in the case of produce, eating the rainbow is intuitive. I love the beautiful hues of cauliflower you can find this time of year. So much more fun than eating the common white. I will say however that the purple cauliflower bleeds so it’s not idea for soups and such. I’m speaking from experience, y’all. We ate an oddly tinted grayish-purplish soup a few weeks back. Even though it tasted just fine, it wasn’t all the appealing to look at. Like I said, I eat with my eyes.

For a year now, I’ve wanted to recreate this gratin dish. One, it’s gorgeous. Two, cauliflower is easily one of my favorite veggies and when roasted it’s even better. Three, I’m a sucker for anything swine. And cheese for that matter too so pretty much this recipe has it all for me: roasted cauliflower, crispy, salty pancetta, and sharp white cheddar. Served over a bowl of greens, this was a midday lunch that rocked my socks. Totally worth the little bit of effort to put it together.

One of the perks of food blogging is making gorgeous food at 1 in the afternoon and then getting to sit down and enjoy the fruits of your labor. I almost always dole out the baked goods but dishes like this get devoured right in my own kitchen. With boy the boys at school, I made this dish on the rare afternoon that my husband I were both home and it quickly became lunch while we caught up on Scandal. Speaking of, I miss Olivia.

Like last month, I’m teaming up with my friend Becky in her monthly series, Eat Seasonal. You can grab this beautiful May Eat Seasonal Guide graphic over at her blog,Vintage Mixer.

I hope everyone has a great and once again, happy belated Mother’s Day! See you back here tomorrow for another spring inspired recipe for Taco Tuesday.

Roast Cauliflower and Pancetta Gratin

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Ingredients

1/2 head orange cauliflower, cut into 1-inch florets
1/2 head purple cauliflower, cut into 1-inch florets
6 oz pancetta
2 tablespoon olive oil
3 oz shredded sharp white cheddar
salt and pepper
parsley for garnish
spinach and/or mixed greens

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Instructions

Preheat the oven to 400F degrees.
Chop the pancetta into a coarse chop.
Heat large sauté pan over medium heat and add pancetta. Cook 6-8 minutes, stirring occasionally, until crispy; remove the pancetta to a plate until ready to use.
Add olive oil to the pan, turn heat to medium-high and add cauliflower florets. Stirring occasionally, cook just until you get some nice brown marks on the cauliflower, about 5-6 minutes; season with salt and pepper.
Transfer cauliflower to a baking dish. Top with crispy pancetta bits and shredded sharp white cheddar. Cook, uncovered, in the preheated oven for 10-15 minutes until cheese is nicely melted and cauliflower is a nice crisp-tender.
Remove from oven and serve over mixed greens and/or fresh spinach.