This cauliflower steak with celeriac purée, brown sage butter and toasted hazelnuts is a vegetarian dish that is a real treat for the taste buds.
The combination of butter-fried cauliflower steak, velvety celeriac purée and aromatic brown butter with sage gives a deep, rich flavour, while the crisp hazelnuts add the perfect crunchy contrast.
The celeriac purée is the same wonderful version as in this recipe, where it provides an intense, creamy base for the dish. Here it is paired with the tender cauliflower steak, fried golden in butter so it takes on a deep, lightly caramelised flavour.
It all comes together with the nutty flavour of brown butter, lifted by fresh sage. The toasted hazelnuts offer a crisp counterpoint to the creamy elements – and together they make a dish that is simple and luxurious at the same time.
A few tips for the dish
Fry the cauliflower steak in butter and a little oil – it gives a beautifully caramelised surface and plenty of flavour.
Brown the butter slowly – it should smell nutty and turn golden, but take care that it doesn’t burn.
The celeriac purée can be made ahead and simply reheated before serving.
Toast the hazelnuts lightly in the oven before serving – it intensifies their flavour and makes them extra crisp. You can also buy nuts that are already roasted and skinned.
Cauliflower steak with celeriac purée, hazelnuts and brown butter
Ingredients
Celeriac purée
- 550 ml whole milk
- 250 ml whipping cream (38% fat)
- 6-8 sprigs thyme
- 12 peppercorns
- 1/2 nutmeg, finely grated
- 80 g Parmesan, ideally the rind end
- 150 g butter
- 1200 g celeriac – trimmed weight
- Salt
Brown sage butter
- 100 g butter
- 30 fresh sage leaves
- Freshly ground pepper
Cauliflower steaks
- 1-2 heads of cauliflower
- 100 g butter
- Oil
- Paprika
- Salt and freshly ground pepper
To serve
- 100 g toasted hazelnuts – click here for the recipe
- Finely chopped parsley
Method
Celeriac purée
- Pour the milk, cream, thyme, nutmeg, peppercorns and the piece of Parmesan into a saucepan. Heat it well, then turn down to a low heat so it only just simmers. Leave it to infuse for the next hour or so, stirring now and then.
- Meanwhile, prepare the celeriac. Clean or peel the celeriac. The skin holds plenty of flavour, so you can simply scrub it well and only cut off the base, where a lot of soil hides. Alternatively, peel the whole celeriac – it’s up to you.
- Cut the celeriac into small dice.
- Melt the butter in a wide, deep frying pan and brown the celeriac over a fairly high heat for about 20-25 minutes. Stir regularly and continue until all the pieces are golden and nicely tender. On my hob, that is setting 7 out of 9. *While the celeriac is cooking, make the brown sage butter and then keep it on a low heat – and get the cauliflower steaks ready.
- Crumple a piece of baking parchment and lay it snugly over the layer of celeriac, turn down to a low heat and let it cook for a further 10-15 minutes. The pieces should be completely tender.
- Strain the milk mixture through a fine-mesh sieve and pour it into a blender along with the golden, tender celeriac dice. Blend everything thoroughly at high speed for about 5 minutes, or until you have a smooth, even and creamy purée. Season to taste with salt and blend it well into the purée.
Brown sage butter
- Melt the butter over a medium heat and add the sage and freshly ground pepper.
- Let it foam up well, then turn the heat down a little. Let it cook until the butter browns, stirring as you go. Then turn the heat right down so it just stays warm until serving.
Cauliflower steaks
- Cut the cauliflower into slices about 2 cm thick. The outermost pieces can be hard to use as steaks – save those for a salad or crudités.
- Brush the slices with olive oil and season well with salt, freshly ground pepper and paprika.
- Melt the butter in a frying pan with a little oil, let it foam up well, and fry the cauliflower steaks for about 4 minutes on each side – they should still have a little bite.
Serving
- Spoon a generous dollop of celeriac purée onto a flat plate and spread it out into a circle.
- Place the cauliflower steak on top and sprinkle with toasted hazelnuts.
- Top with the sage butter (leave the cloudy brown solids at the bottom of the pan behind) and sprinkle with finely chopped parsley and freshly ground pepper.
Nutrition
Premium
Virkelig lækker ret. Selv min mand, som normalt ikke er meget for vegetarmad, kunne lide den. Tusind tak for opskriften.
Hej Louise
Hvor er det dejligt at høre, tusind tak 🙂
Warm wishes, Dianna
Hej Dianna. Jeg synes min hvide sovs har delt sig lidt i to – som om den er skilt. Her kort efter det burde være smeltet. Kan den skille? Så må jeg nok prøve forfra
Hej Camilla
Har ikke selv prøvet at den skiller. Har du haft meget varme på?
Håber det lykkedes:)
Warm wishes, Dianna
Vil lave retten til Nytår – men kan det lavet i forvejen og så blot varmes op??
Hej Tine
Puré og brunet smør kan sagtens forberedes og opvarmes. Blomkålsbøffen vil jeg anbefale at vente med, ellers bliver den kedelig i konsistensen 🙂
Warm wishes, Dianna
Mega lækker ret
Hej Hanne
Det er jeg så glad for at høre – tusind tak 🙂
Warm wishes, Dianna
Lyder SÅ lækkert! Kan du anbefale en salat eller andet tilbehør?
Hej Katrine
Hvis du ønsker ekstra tilbehør ville jeg gå med en form for lynstegt/dampe grønt – noget der komplimentere de andre konsistenser.
Det kunne være dampet eller smørstegt broccolini, haricotsverts – gerne med en smule bid – eller grønne asparges 🙂
Warm wishes, Dianna
Den vil jeg prøve. Men kan man tilsætte lidt hvide bønner til pureen for at få mere protein ind i retten?
Hej Kirsa
Ja det tænker jeg sagtens du kan – absolut 🙂
Warm wishes, Dianna
Så lækkert
Hejsa
Tusind tak for de søde ord, så dejligt at høre:)
Warm wishes, Dianna
Kan man bruge en anden krydderurt end salvie som også kan give god smagssammensætning?
Hej Karin
Så prøv med frisk timian, det vil være rigtig lækkert til. Synes tørret timian er mere parfumeret, så lige til denne vil jeg anbefale frisk:)
Warm wishes, Dianna
Smagte fantastisk
Hej Tina
Hvor er det dejligt at høre, tusind tak for din skønne feedback 🙂
Warm wishes, Dianna
Jeg glæder mig til at lave denne ret i morgen til nytår! Hvordan opvarmer jeg bedst selleripuren inden serveringen? Jeg laver den i dag, så der er mindre stress i morgen
Hej Lærke
Beklager mit sene svar, men er på ferie:)
Jeg vil anbefale over vandbad, så har du godt styr på temperaturen:)
Warm wishes, Dianna
Lyder, som en virkelig lækker ret. Den vil jeg helt sikkert prøve.
Hvis man har et låg til sin pande, kan det så bruges, eller gør bagepapiret noget særligt?
De bedste hilsner, Trine
Hej Trine
Hvor dejligt at høre, tusind tak 🙂
Med et låg vil du få mere kondens som kan dryppe ned til knoldselleriet – men tænker nu godt det kan gå 🙂
Warm wishes, Dianna