Market Watch: Cauliflower
It may seem like a boring, ordinary veggie, but cauliflower has extraordinary flavor and it’s pretty cheap at your farmers’ market right now. Don’t let your family complain it’s too bland — jazzed up it can be a real winner.
Cauliflower is a relative of broccoli, kale and kohlrabi. Sure, we all recognize that white head above, but don’t be surprised if you find varieties in different colors like yellow, green or purple (and they’re just as delicious as the white kind). It’s an excellent source of vitamin C and fiber, and also contains antioxidants and biotin, a B-vitamin that gives us healthy hair, skin and nails.
Most folks stick to adding cauliflower to fresh salads or cut up on a veggie platter, but preparing an irresistible cauliflower dish couldn’t be simpler. The easiest? Roasted cauliflower (and it tastes just divine). All you have to do is chop up and toss some pieces with olive oil, salt and pepper. Then roast them in a 400-degree oven for 15 to 20 minutes until golden and tender.
Perhaps this is the most used and popular veggie. Too common that we have forgotten its nutritional exceptional qualities. Many remember it as a Vit C source but you have fiber too.Food Network has 230 cauliflower recipes so you can see how popular it is.
I LOVE cauliflower. I think it all goes back to my childhood obsession with white vegetables thanks to the classic work of fiction that is Bunnicula (a children's book featuring a vampire rabbit that sucks the color out of vegetables, just in case this never made your elementary school reading lists). In any case, as I've grown older my love has remained. One of my favorite ways to enjoy cauliflower is roasting it, like in this recipe for Slow Roasted Veggies with Garlic Yogurt Dip. It makes a great snack and an even easier appetizer for entertaining. Enjoy!