Some people crave chocolate. I crave cauliflower. And sometimes chocolate, too. But mostly cauliflower. I’ve actually been obsessed with cauliflower for years, so it’s nice to see that the rest of the world is catching up! Lately I’ve been seeing cauliflower everywhere I look –prepared in so many delicious and creative ways.
Growing up, my mother prepared battered and fried cauliflower and also blanketed with a cheddar cheese sauce, so loving the snowy crucifer came easy to me. When I went macrobiotic in the 1980s, steamed cauliflower mashed with cooked millet became my new mashed potatoes. Eventually, I left out the millet, and enjoyed the mashed cauliflower on its own. Cauliflower also makes an amazing mac and cheese. Far and away, however, my favorite cauliflower preparation is roasted. I love it roasted plain, or picatta, doused with a Manchurian-style sauce, as a pizza topping, or topped with a creamy lemon sauce or vegan hollandaise sauce, as shown above.
Here is a round-up of some of my favorite cauliflower-centric posts:
Mac and Cheddar Cauliflower
Manchurian Cauliflower Pizza
Buffalo Cauliflower Pizza
Creamy Picatta Orechiette over Roasted Cauliflower
Gobi ManchurianThere are also some great recipes featuring cauliflower in my newest book, Nut Butter Universe, such as Roasted Tahini Cauliflower (featuring two of my favorite ingredients!) and the Scalloped Cashew Potatoes and Cauliflower tastes more decadent than it really is. I think my favorite, though, is the Pasta with Cauliflower-Cashew Alfredo — I used to love creamy Alfredo sauce, and am thrilled to be able to enjoy this healthy vegan version that is super creamy and delicious.
Pasta with Cauliflower-Cashew Alfredo from Nut Butter Universe
I also like to make cauliflower “rice” and of course, cauliflower is terrific in curries. The list goes on…
So, what’s your take on the cauliflower craze?
{ 17 comments… add one }
I like cauliflower! And the dishes you’re featuring above make me want to buy a head at the store next time I’m there! I love the idea of using cauliflower for mac-n-cheese! What a great idea!
I recently did a dinner party where I made roasted broccoli and cauliflower. It was seasoned very simply – salt, pepper, olive oil, and whole cloves of garlic to get all roasty-toasty and sweet. It was amazing.
Karen, I hope you try the cauli-mac-n-cheese. It’s really good.
I love to make simple roasted vegetables with just olive oil, garlic, and salt and pepper — sometimes the simplest preparations are the best!
I’m not usually a big fan of cauliflower, but our local vegetarian restaurant, Seva, in Ann Arbor, Michigan, makes a General Tso’s cauliflower that is AMAZING!!!! Yum!!!!!
Valerie, General Tso’s cauliflower sounds fabulous! I’ll have to try that sometime. You’re so lucky to have such a creative restaurant where you live.
Oh, I love Cauliflower so much, thank you, thank you, thank you for more ways to use it! It’s often hard to find something appealing that plays to cauliflower’s strengths, rather than it just being used as “yet another vegetable”. These all look great. I also love Dreena Burton’s “almond roasted cauliflower” with nooch, mmmm!
Matt, I think that roasting cauliflower is definitely playing to it’s greatest strength — it’s amazing how roasting transforms the flavor of that vegetable! And it’s great roasted plain or with so many different sauces. Wow.
Those cauliflower pizzas were a big hit at my house.
Glad you enjoyed the cauliflower pizzas, Corrin. We love them at our house too!
My current favorite is fried cauliflower with green olives and roasted garlic at Tasty ‘n Sons in Portland, OR – had a plate of it tonight!
Oh yum. That sounds FANTASTIC, Martha!
And NOW I want Cauliflower! Thanks a lot Robin?. I can’t wait to try these!!!!
You’re most welcome Bridget…cauliflower is a good thing to want! 🙂
I love the gobi manchurian and just added the ingredients for the cauliflower piccata to my list. Can’t wait. Thanks, Robin.
You’re welcome, Vicky. Hope you love it as much as I do!
I love cauliflower so much. And pretty much if I could have anyone cook anything for me, it would be you cooking cauliflower. (And chocolate cherry cake pie for dessert, of course.) 😉
Lately I have really enjoyed roasting cauliflower until it is very soft and starting to brown and then pureeing it until it is smooth, maybe just adding a splash of water. It makes a great spread for sandwiches or rice cakes!
Susan, maybe one day I can cook cauliflower for you! (and chocolate-cherry cake-pie!) Your roasted cauliflower puree sounds great — I’ll have to try that! 🙂
I can but dream! 😉