Cauliflower, broccoli and blue cheese gratin
Cauliflower and broccoli gratin with Danish blue cheese is a comforting vegetable bake where the Thermomix TM7 steams the florets and blends a silky cheese sauce in one bowl. The tangy blue cheese melts into a creamy white sauce with dry wine, coating tender greens before baking to a golden finish. Ideal as a vegetarian main course or hearty side, ready with minimal hands-on effort thanks to precise temperature control.
About this recipe
Cauliflower, broccoli and blue cheese gratin Thermomix TM7 style brings a classic French-inspired oven bake within easy reach of any home cook. Searching for gratin recipes with your all-in-one kitchen machine usually stops at potato versions, yet this one pairs two cruciferous favourites with bold Danish blue cheese and a splash of dry white wine for a far more interesting result. The TM7 handles every stage in a single mixing bowl: you weigh the flour and butter directly into it, steam the cauliflower and broccoli florets to just-tender in the Varoma while the sauce base warms, then blend the milk, cheese and seasoning into a lump-free, velvety sauce with consistent stirring. Precise temperature control means the roux cooks gently without catching, while the steamed vegetables keep their bite instead of turning watery. Serve it as a vegetarian main course with crusty bread or a green salad, or as a luxurious side for a festive Sunday roast. It is exactly the kind of quick weeknight dinner that tastes like you spent hours at the hob.
Preparation tips
- Cut the cauliflower and broccoli florets to a similar size so they steam evenly and finish at the same tenderness; uneven pieces leave some stems hard while tips turn soft. Pat the steamed florets dry before layering so the blue cheese sauce clings instead of thinning.
- Crumble the Danish blue cheese while it is cold from the fridge, then add it off the heat so it melts gently into the sauce rather than splitting. Reserve a few crumbs to scatter on top before baking for extra savoury pockets.
- For a milder family version, swap half the blue cheese for mature cheddar or Gruyère and reduce the white wine to a tablespoon. Leftovers keep well covered in the fridge and reheat beautifully in the oven the next day.
Recipe variations
- Lactose-light version: replace the full cream milk with lactose-free milk and use a lactose-free blue-style cheese or a mix of feta and cheddar. Keep the butter-based roux but finish with a squeeze of lemon to lift the tang the blue cheese normally provides.
- Festive winter variation: fold in roasted hazelnuts and caramelised shallots between the florets, top with grated Gruyère and breadcrumbs for a crunchy golden crust, and add a pinch of nutmeg to the sauce for a Christmas dinner side worthy of the roast.
Thermomix TM7 Benefits
- Steaming the cauliflower and broccoli in the Varoma keeps every floret tender-crisp while the sauce starts below, saving you a separate pan. [Multi-Function]
- Heating the butter, flour and milk with precise temperature control gives the gratin sauce a lump-free, velvety texture without constant stirring. [Precision Control]
- Weighing the plain flour and butter straight into the mixing bowl ensures the roux ratios are exact, so your blue cheese sauce thickens consistently every time. [Precision Control]
- Mixing the crumbled Danish blue cheese and dry wine into the sauce produces an evenly seasoned, silky blend in seconds, far quicker than whisking by hand. [Multi-Function]
- Grating a cheese topping directly over the mixing bowl contents adds a golden crust while catching every crumb, leaving your worktop clean. [Easy Cleanup]
Ingredients
- water
- cauliflower
- broccoli
- plain flour
- butter
- full cream milk
- dry white wine
- sea salt
- ground white pepper
- ground nutmeg (optional)