CAULIFLOWER - That's It - Cauliflower!

CAULIFLOWER! - That's It - Cauliflower!

What can you say about a vegetable that looks like a human brain?  Never, ever wanted to eat cauliflower.  It's white.  I actually love white: white walls, white down comforters, white sweaters, white farm sinks - but white vegetables that look like gray matter from Dr. Frankenstein's lab... not so much.

That is til I decided to go low carb some years ago.  I really missed mashed potatoes and found the South Beach Diet recipe for mashed cauliflower.  Loved it.  Now I've discovered a new, and really tasty way to eat cauliflower.  Roasted.  The whole head!  

Yes, it still looks like someone's brain... someone's fried brain... but each time I bite into this sumptuous brain matter, I realize it has a nutritious and delicious I.Q.

 Roasted Cauliflower

from Allrecipes.com

Ingredients:

1/4 cup butter, softened
1 tablespoon chopped fresh dill
1 clove garlic, minced
1 teaspoon grated lemon zest
A dash of lemon juice
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
1 large head cauliflower, leaves trimmed

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C)

Mix butter, dill, garlic, lemon zest, cumin, salt, pepper in a bowl.  I add a little lemon juice to help blend all the ingredients into a smooth "paste".

Cut cauliflower stem flush with the rest of the head so it can stay upright in a casserole (Pyrex) dish.  Spread butter mixture evenly over the top and sides of the cauliflower (I use a pastry brush)...

... place in the casserole dish and cover w/ foil.

Roast in the preheated oven until tender and cooked through, about 1 1/4 hours.

Transfer to a platter and spoon any liquid in the casserole dish over the cauliflower.

Serve and enjoy. It's brain food!

POT PIE FOR A SUMMER NIGHT

POT PIE FOR A SUMMER NIGHT

(Sausage, Cauliflower & Kale Pot Pie)

OK, the last thing you might think of serving on a summer night is a pot pie… and if it’s hot and humid, I don’t blame you.  I certainly wouldn’t want to be cooking over the stove on a steamy night, never mind putting on the oven.  Well, actually, I don’t want Richard to be cooking over the stove on a steamy night.

But, and this is a big “BUT” – what about those wonderful chilly nights at the shore or in the mountains or as you’re whiling away your time-off in a house by a lake… what about those cold and rainy summer nights in the city?  This pot pie is the perfect alternative to a bowl of hearty soup.

I love sausage – and mixed with kale, my new favorite leafy veggie, and puff pastry, what could be better?  Have friends over, it serves a lot.  Sip some wine, play a little Scrabble or maybe a game of hearts.  Make it a pot party.

SAUSAGE, CAULIFLOWER & KALE

POT PIE

(From Real Simple Magazine)

Ingredients:

1 T. EVOO
1 lb. sweet Italian sausage links, casings removed and meat broken into 3/4 inch pieces
2 medium onions, chopped
1 T. chopped fresh rosemary
salt & pepper
1/3 cup all purpose flour
3 cups low sodium chicken broth
1 bunch kale, torn into bite size pieces
2 T. white wine vinegar
1 small head of cauliflower, cut into florets (about 2 lbs.)
2 sheets puff pastry (one 17.3 oz. package) each cut into four rectangles

Directions:

Heat oven to 400 degrees F.  Heat oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat.  Add the sausage and cook, tossing occasionally, until browned, 4-6 minutes.  

 

Using a slotted spoon, transfer the sausage to a large bowl.

Add the onions, rosemary, 1/4 t. salt & 1/4 t. pepper to the drippings and cook, stirring, until softened, 3-5 mins.  

Sprinkle with the flour and cook, stirring, 1 min.  Add broth and simmer til thickened, 2-3 mins.

Add the kale, vinegar, 1/2 t. salt, and 1/4 t. pepper and cook, tossing, til the kale is wilted, 2-3 mins.

Add the kale mixture and cauliflower to the sausage and combine.  

Transfer to a 9x13 inch, 3-quart baking dish

 

and top with the puff pastry, overlapping the rectangles slightly.

Bake until the pastry is golden and the filling is bubbling, 25-30 mins.  Let stand 5 minutes before serving.