Veggie Lovers

Cooking is my safe haven.  I enjoy washing, dicing, cutting, pealing, sizzling, stirring, baking, and yes of course, eating.  I had a few friends over the other night and I prepared a new dish called Incredible Baked Cauliflower and Broccoli Cannelloni that I found off the cooking channel.  The ‘incredible’ preface is not deceiving.  This dish will make your mouth water and leave you wanting more.  Here’s what you do.

Total Time:                         1 hr 30 min

Prep:                                     20 min

Cook:                                     1 hr 10 min

Yield:                                     4 to 6 servings

Level:                                     Intermediate

Ingredients:

Sea Salt

1 pound broccoli, washed, florets and stalks chopped

1 pound white cauliflower, washed

Olive oil

7 cloves garlic, peeled and finely sliced

1 small bunch fresh thyme, leaves picked

2 cups tomato sauce

2 cups crème fraiche (found at Trader Joe’s)

7 ounces Parmesan, finely grated

16 cannelloni tubes

7 ounces mozzarella cheese

Directions

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.  Bring a large saucepan of salted water to a boil and drop in the chopped broccoli and cauliflower. Boil for 5 to 6 minutes, until cooked, then drain.

In a new saucepan dribble some olive oil and the garlic.  Stir around for a few minutes before adding the cooked broccoli and cauliflower.  Add a couple tablespoons of water.  Stir everything together and then cook slowly for 15-20 minuets.  Mash up the veggies with a potato masher and season with salt and pepper.

Find a baking sheet and coat the bottom layer with the tomato sauce.  Then to make the white sauce, add the crème fraiche with half the Parmesan, salt and pepper and a little bit of water and stir together.

Fill your cannelloni tubes with the mashed veggies.  Place them on top of the tomato sauce and then add the white sauce over them.  Season with salt and pepper, add the remaining Parmesan and place the mozzarella on top.  Drizzle with olive oil and bake in oven for 30 to 40 minutes.

There you have it!  Enjoy and happy cooking!