I’ve really enjoyed the Sprouted Kitchen cookbook. I made these ‘meatballs‘ for the blog and successfully tried a couple of other ideas over the past year. There was no plan to post this recipe, but I decided to try it while flipping through Sara’s book in search of new ideas for our weekly meal plan. Once we made it, I decided I wanted to share – and I didn’t want to wait until the next time I made it. So – the next day I took our leftovers and snapped a couple of pictures – without any cheese, because I don’t have any left. The point is that you should try this – as a main course, as a side, as a lunch at the office, with egg, without an egg…if you like cauliflower or not. It’s yummy and filling and worked perfectly as our meatless Monday dinner.
*I also wanted to share the photo I took for the current issue of Ottawa Magazine – have you ever had Brick Toast?
Ingredients
- 1 head of cauliflower (about 3 pounds)
- 2 tablespoons of extra-virgin olive oil
- 2 teaspoons of lemon pepper
- Sea salt and freshly ground pepper
- 1 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
- 1/2 pound capellini or spaghetti
- 4 tablespoons of unsalted butter
- 2 tablespoons of white balsamic vinegar
- Handful of fresh basil, cut into thin slivers
- 1/2 cup chopped toasted pecans (recipe calls for hazelnuts)
- Shaved Pecerino
- 4 eggs (optional)
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 425F.
- Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil over high heat for the pasta. Meanwhile, cut the cauliflower into 1-inch florets, discarding the thick middle stem. Spread the florets on a rimmed baking sheet and toss with the olive oil, making sure each piece is coated. Sprinkle with the lemon pepper, salt and nutmeg and toss again. Roast, gently stirring about halfway through the cooking time, until there are lots of brown caramelized spots - 25-30 minutes.
- Cook pasta according to the package instructions. Meanwhile, in a a large pan over medium heat, warm the butter and swirl it around the pan until it starts to bubble and just begins to smell toasty, about 2 minutes. Turn off the heat. Drain the pasta, reserving a bit of pasta water. Add the pasta to the pan with the browned butter, add the capellini, a splash of the pasta water, the balsamic vinegar, basil, half of the cauliflower and nuts, and pinch or two of salt. Toss everything to combine.
- Fry four eggs in a large pan.
- Divide pasta among plates and top each serving with a a portion of the remaining cauliflower and nuts,a bit of pepper, an egg and garnish with some shaved cheese. Serve immediately.
Notes
I replaced the hazelnuts with pecans, since that's what I had on hand. I also used regular pasta - the recipe calls for whole grain or brown rice pasta and I added a bit more butter to the pan to brown - because I really like browned butter.
