You Don't Scare Me, Romanesco Cauliflower!

Yesterday we cooked Pollo di Casseroula, Roasted Potatoes, and Romanesco Cauliflower with Gremolata Breadcrumbs.  The chicken was baked in a sauce of tomatoes, capers, & white wine.  The secret ingredient - mayo. My husband, Owen, was the mastermind behind this dish and he would prefer I call it aioli.  Best Foods aioli.  It was whisked in at the very end to add a creaminess to the sauce.  My finicky 5 year old ate her chicken up before she even had a chance to think of something to complain about. And that’s fast.

My great discovery this week was Romanesco Cauliflower.  I’ve looked sideways at this vegetable for a long time.  You can’t help but stare, really. What ARE you?  Last week one showed up in my CSA box, and it was time to figure out how to cook it.  So I called JM’s husband, John.  He’s a chef and he knows about these things.  He was like, you know, just cook it.  Apply heat.  Blanch it.  Easy.  And it really was.  When you cut this vegetable in half you see it’s got a pretty big core.  Do not discard!  This core is not tough like a ‘normal’ cauliflower stem.  It’s not even as tough as a broccoli stem. It’s sweet and nutty.  We cut each head into 8 or so pieces, tossed them with olive oil and roasted them in a 400 degree oven.  They cooked really fast – 15 min.  We served ours with toasted panko bread crumbs tossed with lemon zest, garlic, and parsley.  Another great preparation is to blanch them – they keep their vibrant green color.  I think Romanesco would be great blanched, chilled, and served with some sort of creamy dressing. But I don’t think Panacea can served Romanesco twice in one month – people would talk.  So let me know if you try it at home. Be bold!