Pickled Spicy Cauliflower

A local restaurant serves a small side of what they call pickled vegetables. They're mostly cauliflower, with a few bits of other things, and they're spicy.

I've become sort of addicted to them. Every time I go, I ask for extra.

I figured they'd be easy to make, but wasn't motivated to work on the recipe until I got some Chicken Salt through the blog group 37 Cooks. Upon doing a little sniff test of the different varieties, I decided that the Red Pepper Chicken Salt had enough of a kick to make my cauliflower spicy.

Because I like the color that turmeric adds to pickled vegetables, I added turmeric salt, as well. The first time I made it, I thought it was good, but not quite spicy enough. So I made it again, with more Red Pepper Salt. Now, it's perfect.

Since this is so simple to make, I decided to make just a small jar of it, but if you decide you love it, you can double or triple or quadruple the recipe.

These are quick pickles, so they stay nice and crisp. Since they're not preserved, you'll need to store them in the refrigerator.

Pickled Spicy Cauliflower

Cauliflower florets to fit pint jar
2 teaspoons red pepper Chicken Salt
1/2 teaspoon turmeric Chicken Salt
1/2 cup white vinegar
1 cup water

Cut the cauliflower into bite-size pieces and fit as many as possible into a pint jar. Add the red pepper and the turmeric Chicken Salt.

Put the vinegar and water into a microwave-safe container. I used a glass measuring cup, so just one container for measuring and heating. You could also heat this on the stove in a pan. Heat to boiling.

Pour the hot water into the jar and screw the cover on firmly. Shake the jar to make sure the spices get nicely mixed in. Let the jar come to room temperature, then refrigerate until chilled.

This is done as soon as it's chilled, but it continues absorbing flavors as it sits.

I received products from Chicken Salt via 37 Cooks.

Greek-Style Cauliflower

Looks normal, but the flavor will surprise your guests.

This might be one of the simplest recipes I've posted on this blog, but it's really, really, really good.

The funny thing is that after all the cauliflower that I've cooked over so many years, this is something I never thought of doing until I saw it in a cookbook.

The book is It's All Greek to Me. It's another book from the round-robin cookbook group, Cook My Book.

While there were more complicated recipes in the book, I like this one because of the "aha" moment it provided. If I never thought of cooking cauliflower like this, maybe you never did either.

And it's so simple, you could do it any time you're in the mood.

Greek-Style Cauliflower
Adapted from It's All Greek to Me by Debbie Matenopoulis

1 head cauliflower, green leaves removed, and cut into florets
2 tablespoons lemon juice (or to taste)
2 tablespoons olive oil (or to taste)
Salt and pepper, to taste

If the florets have any browned spots, cut them off and make sure all the florets are about the same size for even cooking.

Cook the cauliflower in salted boiling water until crisp-tender (or cook a little longer, if you prefer).

Drain the cauliflower and immediately drizzle on the lemon juice and olive oil and toss to combine - while it's hot it will absorb the flavors.

Taste for seasoning. Grind on some black pepper and add salt, if needed. Add extra lemon juice and/or olive oil, if desired.

Serve hot.

Roasted Cheese"Popcorn" Cauliflower #PantryInsiders

I've been working with Pompeian on some sponsored posts, and I've had a chance to use a number of their products.

This time, the product is something that's brand-spanking new.

That's one of the great things about being a food blogger - I get to try things that might not even be on grocery store shelves.

This time, the product was a canola and olive oil spray with 85 percent canola and 15 percent olive oil, and no propellants. I've been using the oil for a lot of things in the kitchen - spraying baking pans, spraying saute pans, spraying potatoes before I baked them ... spraying pretty much everything.

Heck, if you're watching your calories, you could spray this on your salad and just add a squeeze of lemon juice or a splash of balsamic vinegar.

Since the oil has a smoke point of 410-425 degrees, it's fine for searing, sauteeing, baking, or pretty much anything you need it to do.

The funny thing is that since this was such a useful product, I used it for all sorts of common tasks, but when it came to thinking up a recipe, I had recipe block. Like writer's block, except that I couldn't come up with a recipe idea that was blog-worthy.

But then I had the brainstorm. And this happened.

If you look at small cauliflower florets, they sort of look like popped popcorn, right? That's part of the inspiration for this dish.

If you can't find cheddar cheese powder at your local store, it can be purchased online from spice shops. There are also cheese powders sold for flavoring popcorn. If you use that, make sure you taste it - some of them are salty.

Roasted Cheese "Popcorn" Cauliflower

1 head cauliflower, divided into small florets
Even spray of Pompeian OlivExtra Original Spray
Sprinkle of salt or seasoned salt
Cheddar cheese powder, to coat

Line a sheet pan with a silicone mat for easy cleanup, and heat the oven to 350 degrees. Make sure the cauliflower pieces are all a similar size. If some florets are too large, cut them in half or in quarters.

Arrange the florets on the baking sheet in a single layer. Spray with a light coating of the Pompeian OlivExtra Orginal Spray. This will help the cheese powder stick.

Sprinkle with salt, to taste (and remember to take into account how salty your cheese powder is) and then sprinkle with cheese powder.

Roast the cauliflower at 350 degrees 40 minutes, stirring the cauliflower about halfway through the cooking time. Test one. It should be folk-tender, but not mushy. It's fine if there's a little bit of bite, but it shouldn't be crunchy.

Increase the heat to 400 degrees and roast the cauliflower until it's lightly browned in spots, another 10 to 15 minutes. Stir, if needed, after 10 minutes. Or, if you like you can broil for just a minute or two.

Serve hot.

Although ... can I admit that I like this cold, as well. It's a nice little snack and it makes a pretty garnish on top of a salad.

This post was sponsored by Pompeian. I received product for my use in developing the recipe, and compensation for recipe development. All words and ideas are mine. Look for Pompeian on Facebook!

What Kind of Cauliflower are YOU?

If you were a cauliflower, what kind of cauliflower would you be?

Back in the stone age when I was a child, cauliflower was white. Now, they come in colors - orange, green and purple. And they each have their own personalities, don't you think?

For quite some time, I had wanted to do a side-by-side taste test of the three colored varieties of cauliflower, but I hadn't gotten around to it. So when my friends at Frieda's Specialty Produce offered me some, I said, sure, I'll take one of each.

Besides wanting to do a taste test, cauliflower is one of my favorite vegetables. A temporary overabundance wasn't a problem.

So, I munched them raw and I sampled them cooked. I imagined that I could taste subtle differences, with the green edging towards broccoli flavor, the orange having essence of squash, and the purple having just a tinge of sharpness.

But, in a blind taste test, I couldn't tell them apart. At all. Maybe there are subtle differences, but perhaps I was completely swayed by the colors.

When it comes to food presentation, color can make a big difference, though. While I love plain white cauliflower, sometimes it just doesn't dress up that plate of chicken and mashed potatoes, so I turn to carrots or a green vegetable. Or ... brightly colored cauliflower.

All three are bright and happy ... but let's look a little closer at their personalities.

I been searchin' for a heart of gold ...

The gold/orange cauliflower is the model of consistency, with its color continuing from outer curds (yes, that's what they're called) all the way to its core. The outer curds were darkest, and there were some slight variations from the outer part of the stem to the center of the stem, but this is the only one of the three where the color was actually more prominent at the center of the stem than at the edges of the stem.

But how does it handle the heat of the kitchen?

Gold cauliflower: raw, cooked, and pickled.

When cooked, the color takes on a slightly more yellow-gold color as opposed to the slightly peachier hue when it's raw, but it's not a stunning conversion. When the cauliflower is faced with the acid test of being pickled, the color gets slightly lighter, but it remains fairly close to the original color.

If you're a gold cauliflower, you're reliable and consistent, and you cope well in every situation. While some folks might say your style is a little cheesy, you prefer to think of yourself as classic. You avoid drama and have a heart of gold. Your friends all say you're a peach.

It ain't easy being green!

Green cauliflower secretly wants to be white. Some of the curds at the edges of the head were a pale creamy yellow-green color, as were a few curds that were in well-shaded spots in the head. The cauliflower is green throughout, fading gently to a very pale green in the center.

The bright green color makes a great accent on a plate when you've got potatoes filling the role of white food and you don't want to move further down the alphabet to beans or broccoli.

Green cauliflower: raw, cooked, and pickled

When faced with the heat of cooking battle, green cauliflower brightens - but don't overcook it or, like many green vegetables, it can join the army-green troops. When it's in a pickle, green cauliflower lightens and loses some of its bright green, taking on tinges of yellow and olive.

If you're a green cauliflower, you're easy to live with, not very flashy, but a little quirky when you've had a few drinks. If you're a green cauliflower you're a true and reliable friend who does not crave the limelight, but is always around to support others.

The Chameleon

Purple cauliflower is the party animal in the group, changing its appearance depending on lighting and situations. From lavender to dark purple when raw - depending on how you're looking at it, the purple cauliflower was the only one whose color was only skin-deep. It had a bright white core.

Purple cauliflower: raw, cooked, and pickled

When heated, purple cauliflower threw off its party colors and darkened considerably to a blue-purple, and it was the only cauliflower of the trio that left color behind in its cooking liquid. The longer the cauliflower was cooked, the more blue it became. Cooking it in the microwave rather than on the stovetop preserved more of the purple color.

When pickled, purple was the life of the party, first fading to a pale lavender, then deepening to a magenta-purple with hints of royal coloring as it cooled. Just like the cooked version, the color of the pickled version varied depending on how long it was in hot liquid and how much acid was in the pickling liquid.

If you're a purple cauliflower, you're the fun one to be around, and ready to adapt to any situation. But while you can be the life of the party, you don't want the notoriety - you're very difficult to photograph. Since your personality is so varied, you can be hard to get to know well and outsiders might think you're fickle or shallow, but your true friends can see through to your pure heart.

So... which cauliflower are you?

Disclaimer: I receive produce from Frieda's on a regular basis, but I am not required to post. I kinda doubt this was on their minds ... hehe.

Browned Butter Purple Cauliflower and Brussels Sprouts

Once again, I dive into my box of produce from Frieda's Specialty Produce and see what I can make.

This month, both purple cauliflower and purple Brussels sprouts were in the box, and I decided to use them together.

This is one of those recipes where amounts are sort of irrelevant. You could use a giant cauliflower or you could use a small one. Use a little hand full of Brussels sprouts, or use more.

Cauliflower is one of my favorite vegetables. I like it pretty much any way it's prepared, from completely raw to completely soft and pureed. I like it steamed, roasted, boiled, grilled, pickled or fried. I like it hot or cold. I like it as a salad, a soup, a side, or a snack.

Because I like cauliflower so much, I often rely on the simplest preparation methods. Often that's steaming in the microwave and adding a touch of butter.

This time, it was a little different. But that little bit actually made a pretty big impact.

Meawhile the Brussels sprouts were interesting, with purple and green leaves. I thought they'd make a great accent for the cauliflower, adding that bit of green.

What I thought was really interesting about this cooking method was that when the cauliflower came out of the microwave, it was more of a lavender color, but after it came out of the frying pan it was a deep, jewel-toned purple.

The color was simply stunning.

The flavor of the browned butter was really good, but it's almost worth doing, just for the color change. Give it a try, and see what you think.

Browned Butter Purple Cauliflower
and Brussels Sprouts

1 head purple cauliflower
1 cup purple Brussels sprouts
2 tablespoons butter
Salt, to taste

Break or cut the cauliflower into florets and put the florets into a microwave-safe bowl with about 1/2 cup of water. Microwave on high or on the vegetable-cooking setting if your microwave has one, until the florets are cooked to your liking. Drain the water.

Note: you can cover the cauliflower loosely during microwaving, if you like.

If the Brussels sprouts have tough ends or gnarly leaves, remove them. Cook just like you cooked the cauliflower.

Heat the butter in a saute pan. If you had a giant heat of cauliflower, you can certainly add more. Cook the butter until you see some golden brown bits and the butter smells nutty. Add the cauliflower and Brussels sprouts. Cook, stirring as needed, until you seen some browning on the cauliflower and the sprouts.

Transfer to a serving dish. Add salt, if desired. Serve hot.

Spooky Cauliflower Soup

You might have noticed that I've been doing a lot of recipes lately that are adapted from cookbooks.

Here's the deal.

I have a stacks of cookbooks here that need to be put away. Before I do that, though, I want to make a recipe or two or three from each of them.

Some of those books came from publishers, some came from other people. Some I bought new and some are from garage sales. But I need to whittle down the giant pile of books before I acquire any more. It just has to be done.

Meanwhile, I need some blog posts.

And I'm short of time. I've got deadlines rapidly approaching for the cookbook, and I'm knee-deep in dough. The bread kind, not the money kind. Bread dough for the bread book. It's taking my time and a lot of my brain power.

So ... it's easier and somewhat more reliable to adapt a cookbook recipe than it is to start from scratch and create a recipe. When I create a recipe, it's not always blogworthy. It might take a few tries to get the recipe right and the photos right. And even then I might not think it's good enough to post.

But when I make a recipe from a cookbook, it should work. So there's a better chance it will be blogworthy.

Spooooooky food.

This time around, I wanted to make a cauliflower soup. I just got some pretty purple cauliflower and some pretty gold cauliflower from Frieda's Specialty Produce, along with some other really fun (and spooky) food.

I thought it would be fun to make soup from one color of cauliflower and then cook the other cauliflower and use it as garnish as the soup.

So ... I know how to make cauliflower soup. I didn't really need a recipe, but I looked through several books, anyway. No luck. I guess it's not that popular.

As a matter of fact, none of the books I looked at included cauliflower in the index at all. The only place I found it was in The New Food Lover's Companion, a book that's a resource about food rather than a cookbook.

So, what does it say about cauliflower?

In Mark Twain's words, "cauliflower is nothing but cabbage with a college education." The name of this elegant member of the cabbage family comes from the latin caulies ("stalk") and floris ("flower"). Cauliflower comes in three basic colors: white (the most popular and readily available), green and purple (a vibrant violet that turns pale green when cooked). All cauliflower is composed of bunches of tiny florets on clusters of stalks. Some white varieties have a purple or greenish tinge. The entire flower portion (called the "curd") is edible. The green leaves at the base are also edible, but take longer to cook and have a stronger flavor than the curd. Choose a firm cauliflower with compact florets; the leaves should be crisp and green with no sign of yellowing. The size of the head doesn't affect the quality. Refrigerate raw cauliflower, tightly wrapped, for 3 to 5 days; cooked for 1 to 3 days. To use separate cauliflower heads into florets and wash. Cauliflower can be eaten raw or cooked in a number of way including boiling, baking, and sauteing. Whole cauliflower heads may also be cooked in one piece. Adding a tablespoon of lemon juice or one cup of milk to the cooking water will prevent discoloration. Cauliflower, which is a cruciferous vegetable, is high in vitamin C and is a fair source of iron.

Well, then, that's a lot about cauliflower, but a drop in the bucket for the whole book - this thing is over 900 pages long. Lots and lots and lots of information about food.

Interestingly, the section about cauliflower didn't include anything about the orange cauliflower. And, the purple cauliflower I had didn't fade to green. It did lose some of the bright color and ended up more of a blue-purple than the reddish purple it was before I cooked it. But that's fine. It's still a crazy color. And I'll bet there will be more crazy colors coming at us in the future - but I guess that's what it's like in the food world - breeders are coming up with new varieties all the time.

It interesting to read about cauliflower, but it didn't get me any closer to my soupy dreams, so I went into the kitchen and had some fun.

The great thing about making soup is that the flavors can be adjusted easily - as long as you don't add too much of something. Not like baking where you have to get it right before it goes into the oven because you can't taste and adjust a cake as it cooks. And then you have to wait until it's fully baked and then wait some more until it cools.

I was really happy with this soup. Next time, I might try using the purple for the soup and the gold for the accent. I went with golden soup mostly because that was the larger of the the two cauliflowers I received, and I figured that I wanted more soup than garnish.

Spooky Cauliflower Soup

1 medium-large head of golden cauliflower
1 medium potato
1 tablespoon Better than Bouillon chicken base (optional)
1 tablespoon butter
1 teaspoon salt (more, as needed)
1 teaspoon sweet paprika
Pinch of cayenne pepper
1 cup milk, half-and-half, or heavy cream
1 teaspoon lemon juice
1/2 teaspoon ground white pepper
1 small head purple cauliflower

Remove the leaves from the cauliflower and cut in into chunks. Add to a large saucepan or small stockpot or other heavy bottomed pot. Peel the potato and add it to the pot.

Fill the pot with water to just cover the vegetables. Add the Better than Bullion (if using), butter, salt, paprika, and cayenne pepper. Cook on medium heat - the water should be simmering but not boiling - until the vegetables are tender. Add water, as needed, during the cooking to keep the vegetables barely covered.

Meanwhile, cut the purple cauliflower into florets and cook until tender - but not mushy - in boiling salted water. Drain and set aside.

Add the milk (or half-and-half, or cream) and blend the soup with a hand blender until smooth. If the soup is too thick for your taste add more milk or water to thin it - we like thick soups, so I left it fairly thick.

Add the lemon juice and white pepper and stir to combine - or blend again with the hand blender. Taste for seasoning and add more salt or other seasonings, as desired.

Serve with the purple cauliflower florets as a garnish. I served it in black mini-Dutch ovens for a more Halloweenish look.

If you want more garnishes, a little bit of grated cheese would be nice. If you think it needs some green - also a spooky color - some chopped parsley, chives, or scallions would be fine.

Spicy Pickled Cauliflower

11-pound cauliflower. It's sitting on a half-sheet pan.

The inspiration for these pickles was that I bought an 11-pound cauliflower. Yes, eleven pounds. It was a the farmer's market at one the stands that sells most things by the bunch or piece. I bought the monster cauliflower, and once I got it home it looked even bigger than it did at the market.

But that's okay - I like cauliflower. A lot. I planned on roasting some, maybe steaming some, and maybe some soup. I nibbled on some raw.

And then I thought that I might as well pickle some.

My second thought was that I might as well make them spicy. I didn't see any hot peppers at the farmer's market so I stopped at the local Mexican market on the way home and picked up four Serrano peppers. I didn't need anything else - just those four peppers.

And when I got to the checkout, they just gave them to me. I guess it wasn't worth ringing up a purchase for a few cents, but it was still a nice thing for them to do.

But that's okay, I'll make up for it next time. They make tortillas there that are pretty good. I'll be back for those, among other things.

I made a jar of these and as soon as I tasted them I decided to make a second jar. The second time, I added just a bit of sugar - and now I'm not sure which version I like better. The ones with sugar aren't sweet - not like sweet pickles - but it adds another dimension to the flavor.

These are refrigerator pickles, not storage pickles, so it makes sense to make small quantities.

Because of the turmeric, the cauliflower is a very bright yellow - it makes a great accent with pretty much any dish.

Spicy Pickled Cauliflower

2 Serrano peppers
1 quart cauliflower florets
2/3 cup white vinegar
1 1/3 cup water
1/2 teaspoon kosher or pickling salt
1/4 teaspoon turmeric
1 teaspoon yellow mustard seed
1 teaspoon sugar (optional)

Remove the stem from the peppers and slice them into 1/2- to 1/4-inch slices. Add those to a quart jar. Break the cauliflower into small pieces and add them to the jar.

Combine the vinegar, water, salt, turmeric, mustard seeds, and optional sugar in a small saucepan and heat to boiling - or, if you prefer, you can heat to boiling in the microwave in a microwave-safe measuring cup. Stir to make sure the sugar and salt are dissolved, and pour the hot liquid over the cauliflower.

If the liquid doesn't cover the cauliflower, add hot water as needed.

Cover the jar, let it cool to room temperature, then refrigerate. These are ready to eat as soon as they're fully chilled, but I think they improve even more (and they're a more vibrant yellow) after a day or so.

"Look What I Found at the Farmer's Market" Soup

Cool weather makes me think of soup as a starter instead of relying on the usual summer salad. Soups can be hearty and filling, but when they're vegetable-based, they don't carry a calorie load. I'm not going so far as calling this diet food, but it's a lot lighter than a bowl of chili.

My farmer's market haul included onions, carrots, potatoes, corn, and cauliflower. Not a traditional soup, maybe, but they worked well together. The curry powder added a bit of interest, as well.

I've given the amount of vegetables I used for this soup, but you can certainly adjust it any way you want. Mine was heavy on the cauliflower because I had a lot, and I like it. Broccoli would be good - and a different color.

The curry powder was a spur of the moment decision. I was considering dill, but changed my mind while I was chopping vegetables. That's the great thing about soup. It's infinitely adjustable.

Fall Farmer's Market Soup

olive oil
1 medium onion, chopped
2 large carrots, diced
4 medium red potatoes, peeled and diced
1/2 of a medium cauliflower, chopped
4 ears of fresh corn
salt, pepper, and curry powder, to taste
1 quart milk

Heat the olive oil in a heavy bottomed pot, and add the onion; cook until the onions begin to soften. Add salt, pepper and curry powder. Add carrots and potatoes and cook another minute or two.

Add water just to cover the vegetables and cook on medium-high until the carrot are almost cooked, adding water as needed and stirring often to keep the vegetables from scorching.

Add the cauliflower and milk; reduce the heat to medium, and continue cooking until all the vegetables are nearly cooked. Cut the corn off the cob and add it to the soup. "Milk" the cobs to get the last bits of good corn flavor out, and add that as well. Continue cooking until everything is cooked through.

Taste and adjust seasoning. If you prefer a thicker, creamier soup, you can blend some or all of it in a blender, or use a stick blender. For mine, I used the stick blender, but left lots of chunks for more texture.