An Adventure in Rome...

OK, maybe not. Who can afford airfare these days? And what to do with the kids, give them to a relative or sherpa them around?  Hmm... no, we'll stick to Italian style family meals in our very own home. Maybe for ambience we'll string up some vines and paint a mural on our ceiling.

Romanesco Cauliflower  & Fresh Pasta 

• One head of Romanesco Cauliflower also called Romanesco Broccoli
• 2 cloves minced garlic
• 1 tbsp anchovy paste
• 3 tbsp olive oil plus some for drizzling*
• salt & pepper to taste
• 1/4 cup grated pecorino cheese plus more for garnish**
• chili flakes (optional)
• flat leaf parsley for garnish
• lemon wedges

For fresh pasta- Recipe from Mark Bittman's 'How to Cook Everything'

Use only half of the yield for this dish.

• 2 cups organic un-bleached flour (I used one cup white & 1 cup whole wheat from a local grain CSA)
• 1 tsp salt
• 2 lg eggs, 3 egg yolk
• water if needed

I'm cooking for kids so speed is essential. I have tried to make pasta dough on the counter with a well in the centre of my flour for the eggs and never had much success with it.  I am sure it is touch and practice and one day when I have time I may try it again but for now I will stick to the food processor.

Put flour and salt in a food processor, pulse a couple times to combine. Add eggs and yokes, pulse for an additional 30 secs or until a ball forms. If it is dry add some water slowly, if wet add a bit more flour, a tiny bit at a time.

Wrap in plastic and rest for 30 minutes in the fridge or longer. Can stay there for up to 24 hrs. Then process dough with a pasta machine. Unlike an Italian grandmother I have never been able to roll it out and form little shapes. I use a Kitchen Aid to form sheets then roll it up to cut long strands.

For Sauce:

Cut cauliflower into florets, parboil for 2 mins in a large pot of water (big enough to cook pasta), drain and shock them in cold water. Reserve. Meanwhile keep water at a boil and cook pasta.

In a large fry pan heat olive oil on medium heat. Cook garlic, anchovy paste and chili flakes if using, until you can smell the paste and the garlic is soft, roughly a minute.  Add the cauliflower florets cook for a few minutes more. When pasta is done add the noodles to pan, the cheese and drizzle with enough olive oil so that the noodles do not stick to the pan. Toss mixture and check seasoning.

At the table either just before serving or on individual plates, grate more cheese over top noodles, drizzle with more olive oil and garnish with parsley, fresh pepper and lemon wedge.

*I have a cooking olive oil and a higher quality one for drizzling at the table.
**We use  a microplane grater for our cheese so it is very light.

photos by Jeff.

The ordered nature of nature.

My husband recently confessed to me that he doesn't like cauliflower. What?! Almost 12 years of marriage and I didn't know this. What is he going to think when I put this on the table for dinner tomorrow night? I like pushing the boundaries just a little bit and am proud to say he will now eat mushrooms and tomatoes. Crazy times, I know. As small as these achievements are I will take my daring where I can get it- Kids kick my ass.

When I was 20 yrs old, it would never have occurred to me that I would find a vegetable this outstanding or that I would get pleasure from convincing my husband (married no way - not for me, ever!) that mushrooms are not slimy toadstools and tomatoes are more than projectiles.


I love how a seemingly random object has order and structure, and that it makes sense. Called Romanesco cauliflower or broccoli,  originally hails from Italy and can be prepared similarly as one would cook a cauliflower. Now, what, am I going to do with it? 


photos by me.

'ad hoc' Cream of Cauliflower Soup & Crispy Chanterelles

• 2 heads cauliflower
• 4 tablespoons unsalted butter
• 3/4 cup coarsley chopped onion
• 3/4 cup coarsely chopped leeks- white and light green parts only
• 1/4 teaspoon your favourite curry powder (Keller has a recipe for one in his book, but we used our own)
• Kosher salt
• 2 cups milk
• 2 cups heavey cream
• 2 cups water
• 1 cup coarsely chopped chanterelles
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1 tablespoon unsalted butter
• splash (1 teaspoon) white vinegar
• extra virgin olive oil
• additional butter
• neutral oil
• fresh ground black pepper

Clean cauliflower and discard leaves, reserve about 2 cups of neatly trimmed florets about the size of large marbles. Chop remaining cauliflower and stems into 1 inch pieces so that they will cook at approximately the same time (about 8 cups).

Melt 3 tablespoons of butter over medium heat in a large saucepan, add onions, leeks, curry, and cauliflower, season with salt, cover with parchment paper lid* and cook, stirring occasionally until almost tender.

After about 20 mins, discard lid, add milk, cream, and water, increase heat to med-high and bring to a simmer. Simmer for 30 mins, skimming off foam from time to to time.

Working in batches transfer to a Vita-Mix (which Keller uses) or a high powered blender or use an immersion blender and puree until smooth (what I used). If using a blender remember to cool and be wary of the steam. Check seasoning and add more slat salt if needed. Transfer back to large sauce pan and keep warm if eating right away- soup will keep in the fridge for a couple of days.


For reserved florets, bring medium sauce pan of salted water and vinegar to boil. Cook florets until tender, 4-6 mins. Drain. Melt remaining butter in a frying pan and sauté florets until they are speckled with rich browns and golds.


For the Chanterelles. Re-use frying pan that you used for florets, add more butter and a bit of neutral oil to prevent butter from burning, saute chopped chanterelles until crispy, not blackened.


* parchment paper lid, prepare a square of parchment paper by folding into a triangle with tip being the centre of your paper like you are making a snowflake design. Cut the tip so that when you open it up there will be a hole the size of about  a quarter. With paper still folded cut rounded corners on the edge of your 'lid' . Use your sauce pan as a guide for size. Apparently the lid slows evaporation, prevents caramelization and the small hole releases excess steam.
I found the lid really did help, none of my onion, leek mixture stuck the bottom and everything got soft with out getting over cooked.

When all is said and done put soup into bowls, top with cauliflower florets and crispy chanterelles and freshly ground pepper. I wrote the recipe as I cooked it and found that mine was under-seasoned, so check salt each step! I will make this again and again and maybe even try the beet chips. 


**cream of cauliflower soup with red beet chips can be found in 'ad hoc at home' page 127


photo by me.

Cream of Cauliflower Soup

Probably because of the weather and the availability of cauliflower in my refrigerator the idea of this soup stuck with me long after my first peruse of 'ad hoc'. Though my husband has made a couple of the recipes from the latest addition to our cookbook collection, here is my first.


Cream of Cauliflower soup with...(crispy beets).


I made it as per Keller's instructions except for the beet garnish; that seemed way too complicated for a weeknight dinner. Instead we used sautéed chanterelles leftover from the previous night's meal.

Along with smashed potatoes, freshly baked rolls and an ample salad this was a substantial weeknight family-style meal.