roasted cauliflower, grape, and cheddar salad.

After being on a hiatus from everything I am slowly returning to the routines of my life pre-wedding. This includes reading books (I missed you Kindle as much as you missed me), tackling the stack of magazines that always appears to be on the verge of toppling over, completing the Wire (and figuring out which show to binge-watch next), and returning to the kitchen to cook us comfort food (and lots of vegetables).  

In the last couple of weeks I've eaten my share of cookies, bread, and burritos, but now I am trying to ween myself off such things (mostly because I don't want to look like a burrito in a couple of months time). The only way to do such a thing is to turn the healthy foods into the kinds of things I crave which means cheese has to be involved.  

I've had this recipe from the Plenty More cookbook earmarked for some time now (because it pretty much includes all of my favorite things) but only this past weekend did I finally have the chance to make it.  Why I waited so long remains to be seen since this couldn't be easier.  A whole head of cauliflower is broken down and roasted  and then tossed with nuts, cheddar, and grapes.  A tangy dressing composed of dijon mustard and honey (my favorite kind of dressing) brings the whole thing together.  The resulting salad is both bright and utterly fall appropriate and while it is virtuous, it doesn't taste that way (this is why I ate almost all of it).  

Roasted Cauliflower, Grape and Cheddar Salad 
Recipe from Plenty More

I don't think some farro or bulger tossed into this salad would be a bad thing.  That is if you are looking to turn the salad into a meal. 

1 large head cauliflower (about 2 pounds/900 grams), broken into florets
5 tablespoons grapseed or olive oil
Salt and black pepper
2 tablespoons sherry vinegar
1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
½ teaspoon honey
About 1/4 cup or 30 grams raisins
About 1/3 cup or 40 grams toasted hazelnuts or almonds, roughly crushed 
2/3 cup/100 grams red grapes, halved and, if necessary, deseeded 
3 ounces/80 grams creamy cheddar, crumbled 
1/4 cup/10 grams roughly shredded parsley

Heat the oven to 425 degrees. Toss the cauliflower with 3 tablespoons of the oil, a quarter-teaspoon of salt and some black pepper. Spread on an oven tray and roast for 20 to 25 minutes, stirring once or twice, until nicely browned. Set aside to cool.

In a bowl whisk the remaining oil with the vinegar, mustard, honey and a quarter-teaspoon of salt. Add the raisins and leave to soak for at least 10 minutes. Just before serving, transfer the cauliflower to a bowl with all the other ingredients. Pour over the dressing, toss gently, adjust the seasoning to taste and serve.

rigatoni and cauliflower al forno.

Last night, Tyler complained that I don't blog about his favorite things that I cook.  It should be known, that Tyler loves the hodge-podge meals that I put together with the random assortment of things we have leftover in the fridge at any given time.  These meals get cobbled together and they are generally speaking pretty awesome.  How they end up so awesome I do not know (the mysteries of cooking). It's not that I don't want to talk about these meals, it's just that on a nightly basis after working all day, going to the gym, and trying to have some semblance of a relaxing evening, I don't have the energy to religiously document how I made a dish.  Cooking is a lot of trial and error.  It's about tasting and then adding flavors and ingredients.  A lot of these evening meals are made that way and I think the freedom to not follow a recipe is what makes them so wonderful.

On occasion, following a recipe is good thing and that is how this dish came about (one that Tyler declared his new favorite).  Baked pastas are a glorious fall meal, but often times they are heavy, cheese and sauce laden behemoths that leave you requiring a nap.  This baked pasta is the furthest thing from that.  Sauteed cauliflower is tossed with olives, lemon juice, and red pepper flakes to provide a nice bright punch of flavor.  The seasoned cauliflower is tossed with pasta and cubes of fontina  to provide the perfect amount of cheesey-gooeyness.  The whole thing is topped with bread crumbs and baked until crispy, crunchy, and golden brown.  It's irresistible and the perfect dish for a brisk Sunday evening.

Rigatoni and Cauliflower al Forno
Recipe adapted from the NYTimes 

The thing I love about this dish is the fact that you can add so many other things to it (of course I had to alter it).  I mixed in 1/2 cup of chopped red peppers I had in the fridge and that was a superb add-in.  I think some sauteed mushrooms could be wonderful as well as some chopped sun-dried tomatoes.  Feel free to use this pasta as an opportunity to "clean out your fridge".

¾ pound rigatoni or other large pasta shape

1 medium cauliflower, about 1 1/2 pounds

 Extra-virgin olive oil

 Salt and pepper

1/4 cup green olives, roughly chopped 

3 garlic cloves, minced

¼ teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes, or more to taste

3 tablespoons roughly chopped sage, plus a few sage leaves left whole

½ teaspoon lemon zest

1/2 - 1 cup additional add in's (optional, see note above)

6 ounces coarsely grated fontina 

2 ounces finely grated Romano cheese or other hard pecorino

½ cup coarse dry bread crumbs

2 tablespoons chopped flat-leaf parsley, for garnish

Cook the rigatoni in well-salted water according to package directions, but drain while still quite al dente. (If directions call for 12 minutes cooking, cook for 10 instead.) Rinse pasta with cool water, then drain again and set aside.

Heat oven to 400 degrees. Cut cauliflower in half from top to bottom. Cut out tough core and stem any extraneous leaves. Lay cauliflower flat side down and cut crosswise into rough 1/4-inch slices. Break into smaller pieces.

Put 3 tablespoons olive oil in a wide skillet over high heat. Add cauliflower slices, along with any crumbly pieces, in one layer. (Work in batches if necessary.) Let cauliflower brown and caramelize for about 2 minutes, then turn pieces over to brown the other side. Cook for another 2 minutes, or until the cauliflower is easily pierced with a fork. It’s fine if some pieces don’t brown evenly. Season generously with salt and pepper. Add capers, garlic, red pepper flakes, chopped sage, sage leaves and lemon zest and stir to coat.

Put cooked cauliflower mixture in a large mixing bowl. Add cooked rigatoni, additional add-in's if using, and fontina and toss. Transfer mixture to a lightly oiled baking dish. Top with Romano cheese, then with bread crumbs and drizzle with about 1 tablespoon olive oil. (Dish may be completed to this point up to several hours in advance and kept at room temperature, covered.)

Bake, uncovered, for 20 to 30 minutes, until top is crisp and golden. Sprinkle with freshly chopped parsley before serving.

ale, cheddar, and cauliflower soup.

I am a soup girl.  I thankfully date a guy who loves soup (with maybe not quite as much gusto as me but he still loves it).  Most guys don’t really understand soup as a meal.  I am constantly questioned at work as to how I can eat soup for lunch and not be hungry an hour later but I find soup to be comforting and filling and the perfect meal in the cooler months, especially when served a chunk of crusty fresh baked bread.  I have spent an inordinate amount of time searching for a soup recipe that feels and tastes manly.  The kind of dish you can serve to a guy on a Sunday evening during football season and have him not look at you as if you have three heads (because soup is not chili and everyone knows chili is more well received the soup any day).  I have finally found a soup that feels substantial and that seems appropriate for football season and got the boy’s seal of approval (!).  It contains beer and cheese (which we know all boys love) but it also contains a decent amount of cauliflower which keeps it firmly in the healthy category (or so I like to tell myself).  The little bit of Dijon mustard in this soup completely transforms and elevates the flavor of the whole dish.  I recommend serving this with a crusty rye bread or if you want something more I imagine a grilled cheese and sliced apple sandwich on rye would be perfect. 

Ale, Cheddar, and Cauliflower Soup

Recipe adapted from Mark Bittman

When making this the first time I almost forgot the Dijon mustard which would have been a tragedy.  I can’t even begin to tell you how much it transforms the dish.   So don’t forget the Dijon. 

4 ounces bacon, chopped

1 medium onion, chopped

1 medium carrot, chopped

1 medium celery rib, chopped

1 tablespoon minced garlic

Salt and black pepper

1 small to medium cauliflower, cored and chopped

2 12-ounce bottles in the Belgian dark-abbey-ale style

3 cups vegetable or chicken stock

1 bay leaf

¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper

2 tablespoons Dijon mustard

8 ounces sharp cheddar cheese, grated

2 tablespoons cornstarch

Chopped chives for garnish

Place a large pot on the burner and turn it to medium-high heat.  Add the bacon and when it begins to brown and render its fat (about 5 minutes) remove it from the pot and set aside. Add in the onion, carrots, and celery, garlic, and some salt and pepper and cook, stirring occasionally, until the vegetables begin to soften, about 5 minutes. 

Add the cauliflower, beer, stock, bay leaf, and cayenne.  Bring to a boil, then adjust the heat so the mixture bubbles steadily; cover and cook until the cauliflower is very tender, 10 to 15 minutes.  Remove and discard the bay leaf.  Stir in the mustard and puree the soup with an immersion blender or in a Cusinart (or you can semi puree it by using a potato-masher). 

Toss together the cheddar and cornstarch.  Add the cheese mixture to the soup a handful at a time, stirring all the while, until it’s well incorporated and the soup is smooth.  Serve hot garnished with the chives and bacon.  

cauliflower and gruyere pizza.

I have a strong affinity towards recreating the dishes I eat at restaurants.  If something I eat intrigues my palate, I love to analyze the dish, try and figure out all the components, and then go home and see if I can make my own version.  Some versions end up as disasters and some end up as almost perfect replicas, but the process of dissecting and studying a dish is fun for me – it makes me feel like a food detective! 

This weekend I set out to make the cauliflower pizza I’ve had from Grandaisy Bakery many times (it’s called Pizza Calvofiore, so Italian!).   It is a wonderful mix of cauliflower, Gruyere, breadcrumbs, and parsley for some freshness.  I doctored my version up a bit by roasting the cauliflower with some red pepper flakes to give the dish a little heat.  I also used a combination of Gruyere and Pecorino Romano to bring a little extra cheesiness to the dish (I heart cheese a lot) and I sprinkled the pies with a combination of basil and parsley since I tend to put basil on everything in the summer.  The pie turned out super – crispy and crunch from the roasted cauliflower but there was a still a good amount of creaminess from the cheese.  It was a very good interpretation of the original version that made me and the boy very happy.

Cauliflower and Gruyere Pizza

I cut my cauliflower into too large of pieces.  When I make this again I will cut it into a small dice (maybe ¼ inch pieces), I think it would lead to a more roasted and caramelized pizza topping.  But, if you like a softer, less crunchy cauliflower, larger pieces are the way to go!

1 small head of cauliflower, diced into ¼ or ½ inch pieces

1 – 2 teaspoons hot red pepper flakes

2 tablespoons olive oil

½ pound Gruyere, shredded

¼ cup Pecorino Romano, shredded

¼ cup packed parsley and basil, sliced

Salt and Pepper

½ recipe of Pizza Dough

Preheat over to the highest it can go (in my case its 500 degrees).  Put pizza stone in the oven to heat up.  In a large bowl combine your diced cauliflower, red pepper flakes, olive oil, and salt and pepper to taste.  Place cauliflower on a large baking pan and roast about 15-20 minutes, just until the cauliflower is beginning to turn lightly brown.  Remove from oven and let cool 10 minutes.

Stretch your pizza dough on a floured countertop.  Remove your pizza stone from the oven and quickly place the dough on top.  Top the dough with a quarter of the Gruyere and half the cauliflower mixture.  Top cauliflower with another quarter of the Gruyere and half the Pecorino Romano.  Place pizza in the oven.  Cook for 8-10 minutes, until crust is golden brown and the cauliflower is just beginning to char.  Remove pie from the oven and top with half the basil and parsley mixture.   Repeat process with remaining dough.