Layered Veggie Bake with Romanesco

What's not to love about Romanesco cauliflower? Those beautiful spring green spirals almost look like a prehistoric forest waiting to be explored. Putting my mini cocottes to good use I whipped up these beauties for a light but warming meal. You can add and veggies you need to use up in this dish, and substitute the lentils for other types of legumes as preferred.

Ingredients  (fills 4 mini cocottes or 1 medium casserole dish)
1 shallot thinly sliced
2 cloves garlic, chopped
1 tsp gravy granuals (I used Bisto onion flavour granules). If you can't get your paws on Bisto, you can use a couple of drops of liquid smoke, 1 tbsp soy sauce, and 1 tsp corn starch
1/2 cup water
1 cup of lentils
1 small/ 1/2 large courgette sliced thinly
1 potato sliced thinly
Around 2/3 cup any vegetables of your choosing, finely chopped. I used bell peppers and mushrooms.
1 sprig thyme (optional)
A splash of sherry (optional)
1/2 head large/ 1 head small romanesco cauliflower, florettes separated

Method
Preheat the oven to 235°F/ 190°C
In a saucepan add the shallot and garlic along with a little water and cook on low/medium heat until soft.
Add the lentils and the rest of the water and increase the heat to ensure the mixture is simmering.
Cover and leave for around 15 minutes until the lentils are almost cooked through, stirring occasionally.
Once the lentils are softer but with a little 'bite' add the gravy granules, chopped vegetables, and thyme.
Stir and leave for another 5 minutes to begin to soften. Add the splash of sherry (optional).
Add a later of sliced potato in the bottom of your dishes, then add a couple of spoonfulls of the lentil mixture, add a layer of sliced courgette (zucchini), and another couple of spoonfulls of the lentil mixture, alternate with a layer of potato, then courgette (zucchini) until the dishes are almost full.
Add the cauliflower on top- I like to add each floret individually to look like trees in a forest.
Cover with the cocotte lid, place on a baking tray, and transfer to the oven.
Bake for 15-20 minutes until the romanesco is brown and crunchy.
Enjoy!