crispy salt and vinegar cauliflower

This recipe didn’t turn out how I expected – but it was still good!

• 1 large head cauliflower, outer leaves removed
• 1/2 cup oat flour
• 1/2 teaspoon sea salt
• Freshly ground black pepper, to taste
• 1/4 cup + 1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar, divided

• Preheat oven to 425F. Grease a cookie sheet (olive oil is great, or whatever you have,) or if you’re lazy, line a large baking tray with parchment paper. Cauliflower will be crispier if it touches the baking sheet directly.
• Cut the head of cauliflower into small, bite-sized florets (approximately 1 inch across or smaller).
• Whisk together the oat flour, sea salt, and black pepper in a large airtight container.
• Add the cauliflower florets to a large, nonreactive mixing bowl. Pour 1/4 cup of the apple cider vinegar over the florets and toss to coat. If you have an extra 15 to 30 minutes, let it marinate in the vinegar. If not, no worries, you can move straight to the next step!
• Use a slotted spoon to transfer the cauliflower florets into the container with the oat flour. Secure the lid and vigorously shake the container to coat the florets. Dump the florets onto the lined pan and spread them out into a single layer.
• Bake for 15 minutes, flip the florets over as best you can, and bake another 15 to 17 minutes or until crisp and golden.
• If you want a bit more vinegar tang, use your fingers to spritz the cauliflower with the remaining tablespoon of apple cider vinegar. Season with a bit more sea salt and black pepper, if desired.
• Serve warm.

recipe by blissful basil and adapted by friedsig

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I let the cauliflower SOAK in the vinegar, because I was picturing a super-zingy, super-tangy puckery vinegar taste. I love salt and vinegar chips. But I could barely taste the vinegar! (Obviously, I tried this recipe before my ulcers, haha.) If you want this to be REALLY vinegary, definitely soak the cauliflower for a minimum of 30 minutes, and spritz the finished cauliflower with plenty of extra vinegar!

I used apple cider vinegar, but I wonder if nasty white vinegar would give an even more intense tang. If you try it, let me know how it turns out!

I think this is my first time breading raw cauliflower before roasting it – it was a nice change from “regular” roasted cauliflower. More obnoxious to clean up, but worth it for a nice switch-up to the roasted vegetable routine.

I’ll definitely make this again. Use the leftovers in some roasted cauliflower and carrot soup!

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roasted cauliflower and carrot soup

1 tablespoon coriander seeds
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, more for serving
1 large white onion, peeled and diced (2 cups)
2 large garlic cloves, finely chopped
5 medium carrots (1 pound), cut into 1/2-inch pieces (2 cups)
1 ½ teaspoons kosher salt, more as needed
3 tablespoons white miso (less for more powerful miso – i did about 2 T red miso)
1 small (or half of a large) head cauliflower, trimmed and cut into florets
½ teaspoon lemon zest
2 tablespoons lemon juice, more to taste

toast coriander seeds (dry pan, medium heat) 2-3 min. coarsely crush in mortar and pestle.
roast cauliflower and carrots on 425.
add oil to pan, caramelize onion, add garlic.
add veggies, coriander, salt, and 6 c water. simmer fifteen minutes.
remove soup from heat, blend, and stir in lemon zest and juice just before serving. top with cayenne or hot sauce, and maybe a little heavy cream.

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or (their version)

In a large, dry pot over medium heat, toast coriander seeds until fragrant and dark golden-brown, 2 to 3 minutes. Transfer to a mortar and pestle and coarsely crush.
Return the pot to medium heat. Add the oil and heat until warm. Stir in onion; cook, stirring occasionally, until soft and lightly colored, 7 to 10 minutes. Stir in garlic and cook 1 minute.
Add carrots, crushed coriander, salt and 6 cups water to the pot. Stir in the miso until it dissolves. Bring mixture to a simmer and cook, uncovered, 5 minutes. Stir in cauliflower and cook, covered, over medium-low heat until the vegetables are very tender, about 10 minutes.
Remove the soup from the heat. Using an immersion blender, purée the soup until smooth. (Alternatively, you can let soup cool slightly then purée it in batches in a food processor or blender.) If necessary, return the puréed soup to the heat to warm through. Stir in the lemon zest and juice just before serving. Drizzle with oil and sprinkle with chile, sea salt and cilantro leaves.

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modified from the new york times

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solidly decent soup. i have been on a curried red lentil, squash, and coconut soup kick lately, so this tastes surprisingly simple. i roasted the cauliflower and served it with a little hot sauce. i recommend it.

cauliflower crust calzone (gluten-free)

makes three medium size calzones (feeds 3)

Crust

1 small head cauliflower, cut into small florets (should yield about 3 cups once processed)
½ cup / 1.7 oz / 50 gr mozzarella cheese, shredded
1 free range egg, lightly beaten
½ teaspoon fine grain sea salt
½ teaspoon oregano
¼ teaspoon ground black pepper

Filling

6 tablespoons thick tomato sauce
½ cup / 1.7 oz / 50 gr mozzarella cheese
pinch of salt

Directions

Preheat oven to 450°F (220°C) and place a rack in the middle. Grease baking sheet.
Steam and rice cauliflower.
Place the cauliflower rice in a tea towel and twist it to squeeze out as much moisture as you can (I squeezed out more than 1 cup of liquid). This is very important. The cauliflower rice needs to be dry. Otherwise you’ll end up with a mushy dough, not a crusty one.
Transfer the cauliflower rice to a mixing bowl and add egg, mozzarella, oregano, sea salt and pepper. Mix well.
Using your hands, press the mixture onto the baking sheet and shape into three discs (diameter should be about 5 inches).
Place in the oven and bake for 10 (no more no less, 10 minutes).
Remove from the oven and, working quickly, top the half of each disc with tomato sauce and mozzarella. Using a large spatula carefully lift the half of the disc without filling and fold it over the other part.
Use your fingers to push the edges of each calzone together and seal in the filling.
Bake in the oven for an additional 12 minutes.
Serve hot!

Nutrition facts

One cauliflower crust calzone yields 161 calories, 8.3 grams of fat, 8 grams of carbs and 11 grams of protein.

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recipe and nutritional facts from the iron you

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I made three big pizzas with the “dough,” and wasn’t impressed with the chewy crust that tended to stick to the cookie sheets. Weird consistency, time-consuming cleanup, and overall a lot of work for not a lot of results. I tasted a cauliflower crust pizza last year that impressed me, so I’m not sure what I did wrong. Any ideas?

gobhi masallam (stuffed cauliflower)

mark’s recipe. according to him, it’s “slightly adapted from Julie Sahni’s Classic Indian Vegetarian (or something like that”

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Stuffed Cauliflower with Tomato-Coriander Sauce
(Gobhi Masallam)

Ingredients:

1.5 – 1.75 lb cauliflower, core, stems, and leaves removed

For the stuffing:

6 tablespoons light veg oil (prefer mustard oil)
1 1/2 c finely chopped onion
1 Tbsp finely chopped garlic
1.5 Tbsp finely chopped ginger
(3-6?) hot green chilis minced
1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
1/4 tsp black pepper
1.5 Tbsp ground coriander
1/2 tsp ground fennel
2 Tbsp ground blanched almonds
~1 tsp coarse salt
1 Tbsp flour
4-6 coriander springs for garnish
2 cups tomato coriander sauce (recipe below…)

1. Pre-heat oven to 400* F

2. Steam the whole cauliflower for 8 mins. Remove the cauliflower and let
it cool completely. Set aside.

3. Measure out the spices and place them right next to the stove in
separate piles. Heat 4 Tbsp of oil in a frying pan for 2 mins over
med-high heat. Add the onion and fry for 10 mins stirring constantly until
lightly browned. Add the garlic and ginger and fry for 2 more mins. Add
the chilis and fry for another minute.

4. Add all of the other ingredients from the cayenne to the flour; mix
well, and fry for two more minutes. Add about 1/4 cup of water, stir well,
and cook until the mixture turns into a thick paste (not long…). Turn off
the heat and let the paste cool.

5. Stuff half of the spice paste into the spaces between the florets of
the cauliflower. Try to put in as much as possible. Spread the remaining
paste over the top of the cauliflower, and pat it down (it will be
patchy). Place the stuffed cauliflower in a shallow baking dish. Sprinkle
the sliced almonds over it and dribble (…don’t put it your mouth and spit
it out all over it) the remaining 2 Tbsp of oil over it.

6. Bake the cauliflower in the middle level of the over for 25 to 30 mins,
or until the spice coating looks nicely browned, glazed, and crisp.

Serve with coriander springs. Scrape off any brown bits and spices
clinging to the baking dish, and add them to the tomato sauce. Cut the
cauliflower into 4-8 wedges.

Tomato-Coriander Sauce
Makes 2 cups

Ingredients:

3 tablespoons of light veg oil or ghee (mustard oil, or split 50/50 ghee
and oil)
1/2 c chopped onions
2 tsp ground cumin
1 lb fresh ripe tomatoes, pureed (or 2 cups canned tomatoes, pureed)
1 c water
coarse salt to taste
2 Tbsp chopped fresh coriander (cilantro)
(edit) squeeze of lime

Heat oil in a small pan over medium-high heat. When it is very hot, add
the onions and fry, stirring as much as possible for 6-8 mins, or until
light brown. Add the cumin and fry for 1 more min. Add the tomato puree,
1 c of water, and salt to taste; mix well and bring to a boil. Simmer over
low heat, uncovered, for 15 mins, stirring often. Turn off the heat and
stir in the chopped coriander.

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edit 10/13.
not bad! sauce needs an acid – a few squeezes of a lime were perfect. i used some canned pureed tomato, some small fresh tomatoes, and a whole raw red pepper, run through the food processor. skimped on the hot chilis – wish i hadn’t. almonds become beautifully roasty; onions become candy-sweet. good solid recipe and interesting technique!

chili-lemon cauliflower

mega-healthy.

i’ve never made cauliflower like this before. i’m one of the many people genetically predisposed to tasting an intense bitterness in cruciferous veggies like cabbage and cauliflower. citrus often fools my tongue. i’ve never thought to squeeze lemon over cauliflower. can’t wait to try this!

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Chilli and Lemon Cauliflower

Ingredients

500g cauliflower, broken into bite-sized florets and boiled until al dente
1 tbsp sunflower oil
1 tsp mustard seeds
1 tsp asafoetida
½ tsp turmeric
3 green chillies, sliced finely (or to taste)
Juice of ½ lemon
½ tsp sugar
½ tsp salt or to taste

Method

1. Heat the oil in a non-stick pan and add the mustard seeds. Once the mustard seeds have popped, add the asafoetida, turmeric, chillies, sugar and salt.

2. Quickly add in the parboiled cauliflower and sauté on a high heat for 4-5 minutes or until tender. Keep them moving to avoid the spices from burning.

3. Add a squeeze of lemon juice and garnish with chopped coriander.

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from this wonderful blog k.o rasoi.

fried cauliflower with tahini-pom sauce

i recently picked up a bottle of pomegranate molasses at a middle eastern shop. for $2, how could you go wrong? i think i’ll try it for the first time tonight, either in an eggplant-lentil stew or this, a fantastic-looking recipe from here.

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FRIED CAULIFLOWER WITH TAHINI AND POMEGRANATE MOLASSES

500ml sunflower oil
2 medium cauliflower heads, split into small florets, weighing 1kg in all
8 spring onions, each cut into three long segments
180g tahini paste
2 garlic cloves, peeled and crushed
15g chopped parsley
15g chopped mint, plus more to finish
150g Greek yoghurt
3 tbsp lemon juice
1 tsp pomegranate molasses, plus more to finish
sea salt and black pepper
Roughly 180ml water

Heat the oil in a large saucepan. Lay in a few cauliflower florets at a time and cook for two to three minutes, turning so they colour evenly. Once golden-brown, transfer to a colander with a slotted spoon, sprinkle with a little salt and leave to drain. Repeat with the rest of the cauliflower. Next, fry the spring onions, also in batches, for a minute. Add to the cauliflower and leave to cool down.

Pour the tahini paste into a large mixing bowl and add the garlic, herbs, yoghurt, lemon juice, pomegranate molasses and seasoning. Stir with a wooden spoon as you add the water. The tahini sauce will first thicken and then loosen up as you add water. Don’t add too much, just enough to get a thick yet smooth pourable consistency, a bit like honey.

Stir the cauliflower and onion into the tahini bowl, taste and adjust the seasoning. You may also want to add more lemon juice.

To serve, spoon into a serving bowl and finish with a few drops of pomegranate molasses and some mint.

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5/29/12-
I didn’t really follow the proportions. Also, the recipe called for way more sauce than my cauliflower needed. I tried to stick somewhat closely, though. Because the cauliflower are fried, it’s much more filling than it sounds, and part of a batch did me well for lunch. The pomegranate molasses doesn’t stand out strongly; the sauce mostly tastes of tahini and lemon. Cauliflower isn’t my favorite, but this camouflaged the cauliflower flavor well enough that I ate until I was full! I hoped that frying the cauliflower in oil would make it less cauliflowery, but it didn’t.

Not my favorite dish, but the yogurt sauce was good. I suspect I will find myself making that yogurt sauce again – but without the cauliflower.