Veggie Crumble (with option to add chicken)

I love my veggies, and thank goodness my family do too. But they also love their meat a little more than I do, so it is good to have dishes that are easily adapted to cover both options, and this is one of those dishes.

This is a super easy recipe and can be as simple as you baking a great big batch of veggies (whatever you want), then simply making the sauce to combine with them, putting the mix into a large baking tray, adding the crumble topping and baking as per the recipe.

But for those that would like a recipe, then here is what I do.

If you wish to add chicken to the recipe, there is the option of incorporating 600g steamed chicken tenderloins (or use leftover cooked chicken from another meal). You can use whatever chicken you like, but I suggest 600g chicken tenderloins as that weight is readily available already packaged at supermarkets and I want to make this an easy dish. The chicken is steamed immediately after making the white sauce eliminating the need to wash the bowl between processes.

This makes a large dish, big enough for 8 generous serves so is great for dinner with a fresh simple salad, but is also terrific as an alternative to dishes like Cauliflower Cheese when being served with other dishes as part of a main meal for larger gatherings.

With the veggie ingredients don’t be limited by what I suggest … if you have leftover baked veggies and wish to just add the steamed cauliflower to it, then run with that as there are no hard and fast rules here.

I have purposely made the white sauce thin so that when it is added to the veggies it will coat them nicely without being “gluggy”.

Before you start the topping preheat your oven to 200 degrees fan forced (to bake the veggies), and place rack into middle of oven.

This whole dish can be prepared to the stage of the filling going into the baking tray (without the topping so keep that separate), covered and placed in the fridge overnight. Take out an hour before you plan to bake and place topping on before going into the oven. Simple.

Gina @ The Passionate Pantry

Veggie Crumble (with option to add chicken)

5 from 1 vote

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Prep Time 40 minutes mins

Cook Time 45 minutes mins

Total Time 1 hour hr 25 minutes mins

Servings: 8 large serves

Ingredients Method Notes

Ingredients

  

FOR BAKING

• Butter to coat baking dish
• Large baking dish 22cm x 30cm
  
  

INGREDIENTS FOR TOPPING

• 100 g Parmesan cheese cut into chunks
• 1 large or 2 small cloves garlic
  
  
• Rind of 1 lemon – I use a zester - save juice for later
• 200 g cheddar cheese cut into chunks
  
  
• 100 g sourdough bread or bread of choice, chopped into chunks
• 10 g fresh parsley roughly chopped
  
  
• 100 g rolled oats or use a total of 200g bread instead
• 2 tsp sea salt flakes or 1 tsp fine sea salt
• 50 g butter cold from the fridge, cut into small cubes
• 100 g flaked almonds / or mix of pumpkin and sunflower seeds for nut free
  
  

INGREDIENTS FOR VEGGIE MIX

• 500 g sweet potato peeled weight, cut into chunks
• 2 large or 3 medium carrots peeled and cut into chunks
• 2 large or 3 medium parsnips peeled and cut into chunks
• 1 leek white part only, cut into chunks
• 3 tbls olive oil
• sprinkle of sea salt flakes
  
  
• 1000 to 1200 g cauliflower florets – about 1 medium cauliflower can use slightly less if incorporating chicken
  
  
• 2 large handfuls fresh baby spinach
• 1 rounded cupful of frozen peas
  
  

INGREDIENTS FOR WHITE SAUCE

• 1 brown onion peeled and halved
• 30 g olive oil
• 1 litre full cream milk
• 80 g white spelt flour or plain flour
• 60 g butter room temperature, cut into cubes
• 1 tbls Dijon mustard
• 2 tsp dried tarragon
• 2 tsp sea salt flakes or 1 tsp fine sea salt
• good sprinkle of cracked pepper
• 50 to 60 g lemon juice from lemon used in the topping
  
  

INGREDIENTS FOR CHICKEN

• 600 g chicken tenderloins – optional – only if you wish to include meat protein
• extra dried tarragon to sprinkle on chicken

Method

 

METHOD FOR TOPPING

1. Place parmesan cheese and garlic into TM bowl and mill 5 seconds / speed 8
2. Add the cheddar cheese and lemon rind and chop 8 seconds / speed 8 … put aside
3. Place bread and parsley into TM bowl and chop 8 seconds / speed 8 … return cheese mix along with the rest of the topping ingredients to TM bowl and mix 8 seconds / reverse / speed 4
4. Place side until later … do not clean bowl as you will be steaming the cauliflower soon
   
   

METHOD FOR VEGGIE MIX

1. Place sweet potato, carrots, parsnip and leek into baking tray and drizzle with oil, stir veggies around in tray, sprinkle with seasoning and bake at 200 degrees fan forced for 30 minutes … when the veggies come out reduce your temperature to 180 degrees
2. Whilst veggies are baking start on your cauliflower
3. Fill the TM bowl with water up to the 1 litre mark
4. Place cauliflower florets into Veroma and cook for 15 minutes / Veroma / speed 3
5. Stir mix around and continue another 5 minutes / Veroma / speed 3
6. When the veggies are baked place them into a large mixing bowl
7. Top with the spinach and the peas
8. When the cauliflower is ready, place in bowl on top of the other veggies
9. Put veggies aside whilst you make the sauce
10. Lightly rinse TM bowl with cold water (to cool the bowl for chopping of onion) and wipe briefly with kitchen paper … now make your white sauce
    
    

METHOD FOR WHITE SAUCE / AND STEAMING CHICKEN

1. Place onion and olive oil into TM bowl and chop 3 seconds / speed 7
2. Scrape around bowl and sauté 5 minutes / Veroma / speed 1 / MC off
3. Add milk, flour, butter, mustard, tarragon and salt and cook 12 minutes / 90 degrees / speed 4
4. Add lemon juice and mix 10 seconds / speed 4
5. Check for seasoning and add more salt if needed then repeat 10 seconds / speed 4
6. Pour sauce over the veggies and if you are not using chicken stir everything together
7. If you are using chicken steam that now without cleaning your TM bowl … add water up to the 1 litre mark, place chicken tenderloins into Veroma tray, sprinkle with a little dried tarragon and steam 15 minutes / Veroma / speed 3 … place on top of veggies and sauce and stir everything together
   
   

BRINGING IT ALL TOGETHER

1. Lightly grease baking dish with butter
2. Place filling mix into the baking tray
3. Sprinkle topping over the veggies
4. Bake for 20 minutes, turn dish around and continue for another 10 minutes until golden on top
5. Let the dish rest for 10 minutes before serving

Notes

If you wish to add chicken to the recipe, there is the option of incorporating 600g steamed chicken tenderloins (or use leftover cooked chicken from another meal). You can use whatever chicken you like, but I suggest 600g chicken tenderloins as that weight is readily available already packaged at supermarkets and I want to make this an easy dish. The chicken is steamed immediately after making the white sauce eliminating the need to wash the bowl between processes.

This makes a large dish, big enough for 8 generous serves so is great for dinner with a fresh simple salad, but is also terrific as an alternative to dishes like Cauliflower Cheese when being served with other dishes as part of a main meal for larger gatherings.

With the veggie ingredients don’t be limited by what I suggest … if you have leftover baked veggies and wish to just add the steamed cauliflower to it, then run with that as there are no hard and fast rules here.

I have purposely made the white sauce thin so that when it is added to the veggies it will coat them nicely without being “gluggy”.

Before you start the topping preheat your oven to 200 degrees fan forced (to bake the veggies), and place rack into middle of oven.

This whole dish can be prepared to the stage of the filling going into the baking tray (without the topping so keep that separate), covered and placed in the fridge overnight. Take out an hour before you plan to bake and place topping on before going into the oven. Simple.