Over the last two or three weeks, Tammie seems to have gotten on a cauliflower kick. I’m definitely not complaining—it’s delicious! She’s been diligently breaking cauliflower into small pieces, then sautéing it slowly in the terrific Tunisian olive oil from the Moulins Mahjoub that the two of us use so much of. It’s great as is. I took it a step further, though. I cooked it about 10 minutes longer to up the browning and caramelization, then added some torn fresh mint leaves. Then I added some chopped tinned tomatoes (too early in the year for fresh if you’re from these parts)—about the same amount of tomatoes as cauliflower. To be clear, the quality of the canned tomato counts! I’m a big believer in the Bianco DiNapoli tomatoes we get from my friend Chris Bianco of Pizzeria Bianco in Phoenix fame, and we have Masserie Mirogallo and Gentile San Marzanos at the Deli, too. Simmer for 10 minutes or so, so the tomatoes soften nicely, but don’t turn into a smooth puree.
While that was cooking, I prepared some pasta—Mancini maccheroni, Rustichella rigatoncini, or Gentile Vesuvio pasta would all be great. The key is high-quality pasta. I turned the abovementioned Kentuckian, Rob Theakston, on to the Mancini last week when he and his family were visiting the Roadhouse. He was trying to recreate Roadhouse mac and cheese at home and had been focusing on finding just the right cheese. I gently suggested looking in the other direction. The maccheroni is what makes the magic! Rob wrote back, “You were spot on about the pasta, not the cheese, being the magic spot in the mac and cheese. In the words of Lindsey Buckingham, ‘Never going back again.’”
When the pasta was al dente, I drained it, saving a little cooking water just in case, and added it to the deep sauté pan with the cauliflower. I tossed and cooked it for a few minutes, then served it in hot bowls.
When you serve it, grate either Parmigiano Reggiano or Pecorino on top. Grind on some good black pepper. Drizzle with a bit of extra virgin olive oil. Add some fresh ricotta on top, too. I’m a big, big fan of the Bellwether ricotta we stock at the Creamery. Sprinkle on some red pepper flakes—Marash from Turkey or the Calabrian Chile Flakes from Boonville Barn Collective in California that I wrote about last month. Eat and enjoy!
