Receta Rigatoni with Roasted Cauliflower
Food Trends are an annual pursuit for everyone from Bon
Appetit to the BBC. The list that
intrigued me most, however, came from Pinterest, the on-line picture sharing
site where anyone, anywhere can post any image at all that interests them. “Food” makes up for just over 10 percent of
what’s pinned lagging behind Home Décor, Arts and Crafts and Fashion and
Style. (I was surprised that Cat
pictures didn’t even make the top 10.) Pinterest developed their list of food
trends simply by tallying up the most popular pins on its site. This sounds like a flawless way to zero in on what people are actually eating rather than the predictions of someone who is locked in the towers of Conde Nast or Broadcast House. Pinterest narrowed its list down to five. And here they are:
1. Ramen, long a college dorm room staple, have risen in restaurant
popularity to the point that Pinterest thinks they are poised to enter the home
kitchen this year.
2. Hack the Menu.
This involves discovering ‘secret’ non-menu items that can be ordered at
restaurants, coffee shops and fast food restaurants thereby assuring your
dinner mates that you are a master or mistress of privileged information. California’s In-N-Out Burger alone is
responsible for 17 of these.
3. The Paleo diet mimic foods eaten by early humans –meat, fish, vegetables
and fruits. No dairy, no grains and
certainly no processed food. But hold
onto your toque, Carbs are about to enter the picture with recipes like Paleo
Waffles. Although what the early humans
did for a waffle iron is not explained.
4.Tequila is the new Vodka.
And 80 is the new 60…just kidding.
5. Cauliflower is the new Kale. Andrew greeted this last one with great joy
having somehow missed last year’s boat when Kale was the new bacon. According to Pinterest, Cauliflower isn’t
just a side dish anymore. It’s now a
center of the plate item. There’s even a recipe for pizza crust that uses
cauliflower and wouldn’t you know it’s gluten-free!
So there you have
them. A long way round to bring you to
today’s remarkable Cauliflower recipe.
Andrew’s sister Lauren,
always a source of great food sharing ideas, first discovered and then cooked
this Fine Cooking Recipe in their current issue. It’s from their “Make It Tonight” series
- which is a consistent source of great weeknight menu ideas. Here florets of cauliflower are roasted in a
- hot oven while you make buttered breadcrumbs on the stove top. The aromatics are next. Garlic and lots of it is combined with minced
- anchovies. I know I’ve had this discussion before but please don’t equate this
- use of anchovies to those sad dried out little filets topping a bad Caesar
- salad. Here they add a deep, savory
- flavor. The reconstituted currants give the dish a little sweetness. Pecorino Romano and pine nuts join the
- breadcrumbs to top the finished pasta dish.
- Since Pine Nuts are practically a day’s pay, you can substitute toasted
- walnuts pieces without taking away anything from the dish. Let’s not leave out the parsley because this
- is another monochromatic dish that needs the color. The only liberty I took with the Fine Cooking
- Recipe was cutting back on the amount of pasta. I’ve made the dish twice. The first time, I went with their recommended
- quantity and it seemed to overwhelm the ‘sauce’. The second time I used 1 cup of dried pasta
- per serving and the taste of the cauliflower came shining through. Here is the recipe:
- Recipe for Fine Cooking’s Rigatoni with Roasted
- Cauliflower, Currants and Pine Nuts
- Serves 4. Takes 30
- minutes to make.
- Kosher salt
- 1 medium head
- cauliflower (about 2 lb.), cut into bite-size florets
- Freshly ground black
- pepper
- 6 cloves garlic,
- thinly sliced
- 3 anchovy fillets,
- minced
- 1/8 tsp. crushed red
- pepper flakes
- 1 Cup dried rigatoni
- per person
- 1 oz. finely grated
- pecorino romano (about 1 cup)
- 1/4 cup chopped fresh
- flat-leaf parsley
- 1/4 cup pine nuts,
toasted
1. Position a rack in the center of the oven and heat the oven to
500°F. Bring a large pot of well-salted water to a boil. In a small bowl, cover
the currants with hot tap water and set aside.
2. Toss the cauliflower florets with 3 tbsp. of the oil and season generously with salt and pepper. Place the cauliflower on a heavy-duty rimmed baking sheet, and spread it in a single
layer. Roast, tossing halfway through cooking, until just tender and lightly
browned, 13 to 15 minutes.
3. Melt the butter in a 12-inch skillet over medium heat. Add the
panko and cook, stirring, until deeply golden, about 3 minutes. Season with
salt and transfer to a small dish; wipe the skillet clean.
4. Heat the remaining 2 Tbs. oil in the skillet over medium heat.
Add the garlic and cook, stirring, until golden, about 1 minute. Stir in the
anchovies and pepper flakes, then add the cauliflower and toss well. Keep warm.
Boil the pasta for 1 minute less than package directions for al
dente. Reserve 1/2 cup of the pasta cooking water, drain the pasta, and return
it to the pot. Drain the currants, and add to the pasta with the cauliflower
mixture, cheese, and the reserved water. Stir to combine; cover and cook over
low heat to let the flavors meld, 1 to 2 minutes.
5. Season to taste with salt and
pepper and top with the panko, parsley, and pine nuts.