As usual, my cooking efforts vary from complex and inspired, to lets-just-get-the-vegetables-used-up. This recipe was born of the latter condition, namely, a giant head of organic cauliflower that I couldn’t bear letting go to waste.
It’s a very simple, and (I think) rather comforting and homey dish.
As with most of my recipes, it’s very open for interpretation and creative editing. Any cheese could be used, and for those of you who are more dairy-tolerant than I, some very tasty results could be achieved with artisan cheeses. Also any number of herbs or spices might make a tasty addition to this recipe. Here’s how I made it, the simple version.
Ingredients
- Cauliflower (as much as you feel like making)
- 2 T. butter
- salt and pepper
- Rice Cheeze (about 4 oz., cut into chunks)
Put cauliflower into large pot. Cut into chunks only if necessary to fit into pot. Cover with water. Salt the water. Boil cauliflower about 10 minutes, until very tender, but not falling apart. Strain. (This also came in handy for rinsing off a few aphids that had found our way to our organic cauliflower.)
Toss in a couple chunks of butter, and mash with a potato masher. Toss in chunks of cheese while still very hot so they begin to melt, but aren’t completely incorporated.
Commence creative additions. This recipe made me think that it would be very tasty to try half mashed potatoes and half cauliflower. I’ll update when I’ve tried this.