Archive for January, 2010
Pan Seared Cauliflower & Creamy Tomato Sauce
I’ve always had a bit of a love-hate relationship with cauliflower. It’s one of those vegetables I was somewhat forced to eat as a kid and, though I squirmed in my chair, I managed to get it down. Thankfully my mom usually took mercy on us kids and combined it with broccoli and cheese. And in my mind’s eye, cauliflower was always just that: broccoli’s pale and tasteless cousin.
I’m not going to lie to you…I was pretty much hitting the nail on the head with my childhood assessment of cauliflower. As a cook with a passion for putting local produce to use though, I’ve discovered that cauliflower is just a vehicle for shuttling other amazing flavors into your mouth. Case and point: that dreamy Creamy Cauliflower Garlic Soup that I made last winter and the Roasted Sweet Potato and Cauliflower Mash I declared the “perfect dish” many moons ago.
When a mammoth head of cauliflower at the last-of-the-season farmers market made its way into my shopping bag along with a small tub of the most mouth-watering sun-dried tomato marinated goat cheese from my friend at Shellbark Hollow Farm, the wheels in my head began to turn in that way that makes me giddy as I can nearly taste the flavors coming together. The only thing that needed sousing out was how to prepare the cauliflower…
Pan searing a vegetable like cauliflower gives you the opportunity to infuse it with the flavors of high-quality olive oil and a good butter as well as any herbs or seasoning. I heated sprigs of rosemary in my skillet, giving the finished cauliflower a wonderful wafting aroma that enticed me to eat a few pieces even before the sauce was ready. I have to say, if I had to eat “plain” cauliflower, this is the preparation I would always use. The slices were tender but not at all soggy, and the searing added a great deal of depth to an otherwise bland vegetable.
The real star of this show though is the sauce. It really is reminiscent of creamy vodka sauce, but it’s a much simpler one to put together. The key is to find yourself some outstanding local goat cheese that hasn’t been over processed. Just a few tablespoons makes this sauce a stand-out. Next time I’ll be sure to make a double batch since I also really enjoyed having the little bit of leftovers over a bowl of pasta the next day. So, while cauliflower hasn’t made its way to the tippy top of my favorite vegetables list, it can be quite tasty when it finds a good dinner companion.
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