Cauliflower Pasta Casserole with a Crispy Ritz Cracker Topping! It’s like grown-up mac and cheese. Made with Roasted Cauliflower, Onions, Parmesan and Gouda. So good!
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This is an adult mac and cheese. It’s not the gooey comfort food of your childhood, but something more sophisticated that happens to be cheesy and crunchy.
First, roast the cauliflower and onions together in the hot oven. Slice the cauliflower, not small pieces. Not only will you save on prep time, you’ll end up with a much better caramelization with good crunchy bits.
While they are busy getting golden and tender, you have time to grate the cheese and cook the pasta.
There are many pasta shapes to choose from depending on your mood or what’s in the cupboard. Ziti, penne rigate, mussels, rotini or my favorite, pipe rigate (small pipes!) are all great choices.
Be sure to cook the pasta al dente (al dente, not soft), as the pasta will continue to bake in the oven and, if cooked soft at first, will become mushy as it bakes.
Toss the cheese pasta in a casserole dish with the roasted veggies and more cheese, top with a crunchy Ritz cracker topping, and return to the oven to bake hot.
Cauliflower Pasta Casserole
ingredients
For the noodles:
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1 big head cauliflower
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3 tablespoon olive oil
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1 Middle yellow onion
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3/4 teaspoon Salt
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1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
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1/2 lb pastasuch as mussels, pipe rigate or rigatoni
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1/2 cup (1 1/2 ounces) fine grated parmesan
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1 Cup milk, whole or 2%
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citrus peel from 1 lemon (Above 1 tablespoon citrus peel)
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2 tablespoon chopped thyme leaves
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3 cups (8th ounces) grated Gouda cheese
For the cracker topping:
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14 (1 small sleeve) scratch cracker or similar buttery crackers
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2 tablespoon fine grated parmesan
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2 tablespoon melted butter
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2 tablespoon chopped fresh parsley
method
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Preheat Oven to 425ºF:
Place a rack in the top third of the oven and a rack in the bottom third.
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Prepare the cauliflower and onions:
Cut off the outer leaves and slice the cauliflower into slices about 1/4 inch thick. Some smaller flowers will fall off; that’s fine.
Arrange cauliflower slices and fallen florets on a rimmed baking sheet. Drizzle with 2 tbsp oil. Rub the oil into the cauliflower with your hands and coat both sides with it. Sprinkle with 1/2 teaspoon salt and 1/4 teaspoon pepper.
Roughly chop the onion. On a second baking sheet or in an ovenproof skillet, toss the onions with the remaining 1 tablespoon oil and sprinkle with 1/4 teaspoon salt.
(Frying the cauliflower and onions in separate pans gives them more room and helps them fry better.)
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Roast cauliflower and onions:
Place the cauliflower on the bottom rack of the oven and the onions on the top rack. Roast for 25 to 30 minutes until both are tender and golden brown. Turn the cauliflower once during roasting; stir the onions occasionally. Remove the onions from the oven if they are done or if they start to burn before the cauliflower.
Allow the vegetables to cool slightly in the pan. Divide the cauliflower into smaller florets.
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Lower the oven temperature to 375ºF to bake the pasta
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While the vegetables are roasting, cook the pasta:
Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add the pasta to the boiling water and cook for 8 to 10 minutes, or until al dente (do not overcook or the pasta will become mushy after cooking). Scoop out 1 cup of the pasta cooking water and reserve.
Drain noodles in a colander.
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Assemble casserole:
Return the drained pasta to the saucepan and immediately stir in 1/2 cup Parmesan while the pasta is still hot. Once the cheese has melted and absorbed a little into the pasta, stir in the milk.
Add the roasted cauliflower and onion, lemon zest, thyme and gouda and stir well. Taste and add more salt and pepper if you like. If the mixture seems dry, add some pasta cooking water, one tablespoon at a time.
Pour into a 3 or 4 liter casserole dish.
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Top with the crispy cracker crumbs:
Place the crackers in a zip-top bag and crush with a rolling pin until coarsely crumbled.
In a bowl, mix the chopped crackers with 2 tablespoons Parmesan, the melted butter, and the parsley. Scatter this evenly over the noodles.
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Bake pasta:
Bake for 35 to 40 minutes or until the noodles are hot and the top is golden.
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Allow to cool and serve:
Leftovers can be stored in the fridge for up to 5 days and reheated in the microwave or a warm oven.
| nutritional information (per serving) | |
|---|---|
| 392 | calories |
| 21g | Fat |
| 35g | carbohydrates |
| 16g | protein |
