Winter Vegetable Casserole with Homemade Stuffing
Team: The Dicing Divas
Host School: FH Tuttle Middle School
Age Group: Middle School
Ingredients
½ crown of each orange, purple, and white cauliflower
1 crown broccoli
4 medium carrots, peeled and cut into 1 inch chunks
4 medium parsnips, peeled and cut into 1 inch chunks
2 large onions, diced
6 tbsp. Cabot butter
3 gloves fresh garlic; minced
1 tsp. thyme finely chopped
1 tsp. oregano finely chopped
½ cup flour
1 ½ cup milk (local)
2 cups half and half
4 cups Cabot shredded cheddar cheese
1 tsp. freshly ground pepper
2 tsp. salt
Stuffing:
1 large onion, diced
2 stalks celery, diced
2 small carrots, diced
2 gloves fresh garlic, minced
2 tsp. fresh oregano, chopped
2 tsp. thyme, chopped
2 tsp. rosemary, chopped
Salt and pepper to taste
1 loaf day old Red Hen Bread (any kind) cut into small cubes
2 cups local vegetable stock
½ bunch parsley, washed, dried, and chopped
Preparation Instructions
Preheat oven to 350 degrees and prepare a baking dish by lightly greasing. Blanch carrots and parsnip until just tender. Blanch broccoli and cauliflowers in salted boiling water until bright green/purple/orange/white and slightly tender. Drain and set aside to cool. In a large pot, sauté onions in butter until tender and translucent. Add garlic and spices and cook until very fragrant. Add flour and stir to create a sandy roux mixture. Cook until slightly browned, and add milk and half and half while whisking. Bring to a boil, stirring frequently and scraping the bottom, until thickened. Remove from heat and stir in the cheese. Add broccoli to cheese sauce and stir gently to coat. Taste and adjust seasoning if needed. Set aside. Separately, in a large sauté pan, sweat onions, celery, and carrot in butter until tender. Add garlic and herbs and cook until fragrant and toasted. Mix in bread cubes and add about a cup of stock to moisten. Remaining stock can be added if bread is too dry. Stir in parsley. Taste and adjust seasoning if needed. Pour broccoli cheese mixture in the bottom of your baking dish, and top with the stuffing. Bake at 350 degrees until the top is brown and crispy. Garnish with more parsley and serve. Makes 10 servings.