recipe for Glenn, and everybody else

I found out this Christmas that somehow I have become the family keeper of this fabulous recipe. Must be because I'm the family vegetarian, and this is a veg recipe. Enjoy!

DRUNKEN CAULIFLOWER
loosely adapted from a recipe in "Food and Wine" magazine, years ago

Ingredients:
2 heads fresh cauliflower, washed, cored and cut into florets
2 cups dry Champagne
2 cups stock -- I use vegetable stock, but chicken broth would surely do as well
3 or more garlic cloves, smashed
2 large sprigs of fresh thyme, or a healthy teaspoon of dried thyme
salt and pepper
2 Tbsp butter
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1 cup whole milk
1/2 lb Gruyere cheese, shredded (yes, it really matters that it's Gruyere)

PROCESS
1. Preheat your oven to 400 degrees.
2. In a 9x13 inch baking pan or casserole dish, pile in the cauliflower, Champagne, stock and thyme. Cover with foil and roast for 1 hour, stirring occasionally.
3. Remove the foil, turn the oven up to Broil and cook another five minutes, until the exposed parts of the florets are turning golden brown.
4. Carefully remove the pan from the oven and turn the oven off. With a slotted spoon, take the cooked florets out of the pan and put them in a covered dish to keep warm. Reserve the juices from the pan; if you used fresh thyme, discard the sprigs' stems.
5. In a saucepan, melt the butter. As soon as it stops foaming, add enough of the flour to make a loose paste -- you will probably not use the full 1/4 cup. Season with salt & pepper. Stir and cook until the roux turns the color of peanut butter. This takes a while. Be patient.
6. Add the pan juices and the milk to the roux; stir till the roux is completely incorporated. When the sauce is smooth and begins to thicken, add the shredded cheese. Stir until the cheese melts completely and the sauce is smooth again.
7. Pour the sauce over the cauliflower and serve immediately. This keeps well and reheats divinely. Leftovers, should there be any, also make good soup -- just add a couple of cups of hot stock and whir it up with a stick blender.