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Cauliflower


KeithA

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I normally hate cauliflower, but have started to enjoy the taste more when cooked as one component of other dishes (e.g. it was good diced up in the classic mac and cheese app at co co sala). Most importantly, my wife bought a huge head and wants me to eat it and was thinking about a soup (but I'm not so sure if that will be good). So please post your recipes/ideas on a way to turn this usually bland veggie into something delish. Thanks.

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I normally hate cauliflower, but have started to enjoy the taste more when cooked as one component of other dishes (e.g. it was good diced up in the classic mac and cheese app at co co sala). Most importantly, my wife bought a huge head and wants me to eat it and was thinking about a soup (but I'm not so sure if that will be good). So please post your recipes/ideas on a way to turn this usually bland veggie into something delish. Thanks.

Chop it into modest-sized bits, rinse it in olive oil, sprinkle it with salt and roast at 375 until roasty. An excellent and addictive side dish.

Also makes a decent soup when pureed and served with mussels.

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For soup I recently roasted cauliflower, then added it into a pot with chicken stock, mushrooms, and onions, and then pureed. It sweet and creamy from the cauliflower with earthy notes from the mushrooms. A great low fat dish.

Edited to add that my favorite way to eat cauliflower is simply steamed and then doused in cheese sauce (think mac and cheese sans mac).

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I normally hate cauliflower, but have started to enjoy the taste more when cooked as one component of other dishes (e.g. it was good diced up in the classic mac and cheese app at co co sala). Most importantly, my wife bought a huge head and wants me to eat it and was thinking about a soup (but I'm not so sure if that will be good). So please post your recipes/ideas on a way to turn this usually bland veggie into something delish. Thanks.
I like cauliflower prepared in different ways (and sometimes raw), but it tastes best to me served in a cheese sauce. I made it recently after not having had it in ages, and it was just as satisfying as ever. I just make a basic white sauce with cheese and pour it over the cauliflower. The last time I used half Comte and half cheddar, which was a delicious combination. I also added a little fresh grated nutmeg and a pinch of cayenne to the sauce. Steam (or boil) cauliflower florets until a steak knife will slide into it a big piece easily, but not so that it falls apart.
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Back when South Beach and Atkins diets started becoming popular I remember hearing about a lot of cauliflower mashes being substituted for potatoes, but I had never tried it til the other night. I used some potato in my recipe, but you could easily do it with all cauliflower.

1 medium potato

3 cups cauliflower florets (I basically used the whole head)

3 Tbsp milk

1 Tbsp butter

salt and pepper to taste

Cut potato and cauliflower up into cubes/florets and boil over medium/medium high heat for around 15 minutes or until potato is fork tender. Drain, add milk, butter, salt and pepper and mash as you would mashed potatoes.

Honestly, you can do about anything with this you would do with normal potatoes, adding cheese, sour cream, etc etc. I like roasted garlic in mine, so I roasted a head and squeezed it in before mashing. I was surprised how good it actually was...seriously almost as good as real mashed potatoes.

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Back when South Beach and Atkins diets started becoming popular I remember hearing about a lot of cauliflower mashes being substituted for potatoes, but I had never tried it til the other night. I used some potato in my recipe, but you could easily do it with all cauliflower.
I like the mix of potato and cauliflower. I don't really find all cauliflower a satisfying substitution for mashed potatoes though. I think that's because I love potatoes too much :lol:. Thinking of that mashed cauliflower trend, though, I decided to use the leftovers from my recent cauliflower and cheese sauce as a topping for cottage pie. Next time I do it, I'll mash them a little more thoroughly. I just kind of smushed them down on top of the casserole. Really good, though.
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Love cauliflower. One of my favorite veggies (and for the kids too). Other than indian, I mainly cook it too ways. Toss in EVVO with salt and pepper and roast in oven. A faster way and used often (one a week) is large sautee pan with garlic and EVVO. Through bit of water to let steam (cooks faster) and let water evaporate. Continue to brown until nice and golden brown (forgot add salt at the beginning and pepper at the end).

Soup

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Tonight, I roasted cauliflower in garam masala for about 20 min at 475 degrees, turning once. I usually roast it with different spices, but I really liked the way it absorbs the cumin/turmeric flavors.

I love the egullet roasted cauliflower preperation (thinly sliced roasting) with assorted curry spices. Last time, I roasted extra, then added it to a pot with stock, milk, more florets, and a potato, with a liberal addition of more curry spices, a ton of pepper, and a touch of sugar. Puree and voila! A wonderful winter soup.

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The once-ignored cauliflower is now as popular as J-Law "” and it's $7.99 a head

This explains a lot about the cauliflower selection/price lately - even out here in CA :(

I always grab a bag of the florets while in Costco. I think it ends up being $2ish/lb? Turns out to be a relative bargain.

Interesting article.  It reminded me of the Vegetable Salesman episode of Portlandia.  Also interesting that kohlrabi is the next "it" vegetable.  We grew this in the garden at my parents house when I was little.  It grows like a weed.

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After reading about the cauliflower shortage in the WaPo yesterday, I went to the 14th Street Trader Joe's and found a whole pile of cauliflower for $2.49 a head. I'm debating whether to bake it with a cheese sauce on such a cold, gloomy day. That sort of thing hasn't been in our diet for years now. Still . . .

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After reading about the cauliflower shortage in the WaPo yesterday, I went to the 14th Street Trader Joe's and found a whole pile of cauliflower for $2.49 a head. I'm debating whether to bake it with a cheese sauce on such a cold, gloomy day. That sort of thing hasn't been in our diet for years now. Still . . .

Go for it!  The cauliflower I bought last week was, I think, $4.99.  I don't think I'm willing to go above that.

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Moosewood Cookbook"s Cauliflower Pie with shredded potato crust is quite good. You probably will not use the whole head of cauliflower. I wanted to make this when my daughter was home from college over the holidays, but at least 2 times, Harris Teeter (Harrison St.) was sold out.

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It's been making me very happy to see cauliflower in various guises on so many menus. I'm not a fan of beets, kale, or brussels sprouts, so the food trends of recent years mean that I drop several possibilities from many menus. But I love roasted cauliflower. Therefore the article about the shortage was a bummer! Those other trendy vegetables didn't seem to lead to shortages, did they? but no one was making "rice" and "mashed potatoes" out of them in addition to cooking them as veggies.

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After reading about the cauliflower shortage in the WaPo yesterday, I went to the 14th Street Trader Joe's and found a whole pile of cauliflower for $2.49 a head. I'm debating whether to bake it with a cheese sauce on such a cold, gloomy day. That sort of thing hasn't been in our diet for years now. Still . . .

Oooh, yes, TJ's has cauliflower and for a decent price to boot. Thanks! :)

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A few weeks ago, I had the Crown of Cauliflower dish at Ris which was wonderful. It uses the cauliflower as a nice base to add many elements together to make a filling, delicious vegetarian entrée (not vegan though as it has a yogurt sauce, which was really good).   

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