A Cauliflower Roast

When I am thinking of sides off the top of my head I usually end up with something green - salad, broccoli, green beans. Whoever thinks to make Cauliflower as its own dish? Don and I have very different feelings about cauliflower. I consider roasted cauliflower a special treat since it's a little on the spendy side and we don't have it all that often. Don thinks it's about as exciting as eating plain oatmeal. He does not have anything against cauliflower per say - he likes it raw and in salads - but like many cooked vegetables he usually finds them a bit boring. And as he puts it, "I like my boring vegetables to be exceptional." So we are always on the look out (and by "we" I mean "I") for some new and exciting twist that will transform our boring vegetables from blah to hoorah.

I will admit that this recipe had a lot of potential, but at the end of a long night (after I had already walked the dogs, run for 45 minutes on my treadmill, showered, stretched, did the dishes, spent 45 minutes cooking the rest of the meal, and reset our hyper sensitive kitchen fire alarm that goes off every night when I'm cooking 8 times and finally covered it with a towel and a rubber band) I got a bit lazy at the end and left out a few ingredients. After roasting the cauliflower I tossed it with a bit of fresh squeezed lemon juice, capers and red chili flakes, but left out the breadcrumbs, anchovies, parsley and garlic. Don and I both felt that, as prepared, it was quite edible but nothing special (3 out of 5 stars) - something I would not mind making again but not anything that we would ever crave or really look forward to. But having tasted the base of the recipe, we are both quite curious - particularly Don - to see how this would turn out in the full version - especially with the anchovies. If anyone decides to give this a try, please let us know how it turns out. Otherwise, we will probably try it again but not anytime too soon.

Recipe comes courtesy of Sunset Magazine via www.myrecipes.com.

Roasted Cauliflower with Capers and Bread Crumbs

Ingredients

2 heads cauliflower (about 3 lb.)
1/4 cup olive oil
About 1/4 teaspoon salt
4 slices (about 3 by 4 in. and 1/2 in. thick) Italian-style white bread such as pane pugliese
1 clove garlic, peeled
6 canned anchovy fillets, drained
1/4 cup lemon juice
1/4 cup chopped parsley
2 tablespoons drained capers
1 teaspoon hot chili flakes

Preparation

1. Rinse cauliflower; cut into quarters. Cut off and discard leaves and cores; cut quarters into 1/4- to 1/2-inch-thick slices.

2. In a 12- by 17-inch baking pan, mix cauliflower with olive oil and 1/4 teaspoon salt. Spoon half the mixture into another 12- by 17-inch pan and spread mixture in both pans level.

3. Roast in a 450° regular or convection oven until cauliflower is browned on the edges and tender when pierced, 15 to 20 minutes.

4. Meanwhile, toast bread slices. Rub one side of each with garlic clove; discard any remaining garlic. Let bread cool, then tear into 1-inch chunks. In a food processor or blender, whirl to coarse crumbs.

5. In a large bowl, mash anchovies with lemon juice to a coarse paste. Add cauliflower, parsley, capers, hot chili flakes, and bread crumbs, and mix. Add salt to taste.

Yield

Makes 4 to 6 servings

Nutritional Information

CALORIES 143(63% from fat); FAT 10g (sat 1.4g); PROTEIN 3.9g; CHOLESTEROL 2.2mg; SODIUM 444mg; FIBER 2.6g; CARBOHYDRATE 11g

Sunset, NOVEMBER 2001