Roasted cauliflower and cauliflower rice: a delicious combination
This cauliflower, pomegranate and walnut salad is a version of one of Ottolenghi’s beautiful recipes, from his book, ‘Simple.’
The salad has a delicious combination of roasted cauliflower and cauliflower rice. I added grated zucchini as well as finely sliced cabbage. This gives the salad a bit more bulk (while also including hidden vegetables not as popular with my kids).
The flavour comes from a winning combination of ground cumin, lemon, pomegranate arils and crunchy toasted walnuts, with fresh mint and Italian parsley leaves thrown in.
It’s also a great salad to make a few hours in advance, and then just add the dressing at the last minute. If there are leftovers, I like to toss in a drained tin of chickpeas to have for lunch the next day.
The cauliflower
The cauliflower (Brassica oleracea var. botrytis), is a modified form of cabbage in the mustard family. The word “cauliflower” derives from the Italian cavolfiore, meaning “cabbage flower. ” This name originates from the Latin words caulis (cabbage) and flōs (flower).
Cauliflower is believed to originate from South West Asia. From there, it spread throughout Europe via Italy in the 16th century. Through centuries of selection, crossing and breeding, the most common form became the white cauliflower.
Cauliflower colours
- White cauliflowers are the most common and the most widely sold. They have a contrasting white head, (also called curd – having a similar appearance to cheese curd), surrounded by green leaves.
Coloured cauliflowers are more nutritionally valuable than their white counterpart due to a higher concentration of vitamins and other elements.
The colouring of these varieties is caused by exposure to sunlight, which causes pigments such as beta-carotene to develop in the cauliflower. Colourful types of cauliflower tend to have a more intense flavour than white cauliflowers.
- Orange cultivars include ‘Cheddar’ and ‘Orange Bouquet.’
- Green cultivars are sometimes called romanesco broccoli or Roman cauliflower. This pretty variety is available with the normal curd (head) shape and also with a fractal spiral curd. Other green-headed varieties include ‘Alverda,’ ‘Green Goddess,’ and ‘Vorda.’ Romanesco varieties include ‘Minaret’ and ‘Veronica.’
- Purple cultivars include ‘Graffiti’ and ‘Purple Cape.’
Cauliflower rice
Sometimes called cauliflower couscous, cauliflower rice is simply raw cauliflower that has been blitzed into a grain-like texture in the food processor. I find I get a similar result by simply grating it.
It is believed to be the brain-child of American chef, Ben Ford (coincidentally, son off actor Harrison Ford). Ben debuted cauliflower couscous on his opening menu at his LA restaurant Chadwick in 1998.
The origin of pomegranates
The pomegranate (Punica granatum) is one of the oldest fruits known to humans. For thousands of years, it has had both culinary and medicinal uses across different cultures and civilizations. It appears in ancient myths and religious traditions.
The genus name, Punica, came from the Roman name for Carthage, an ancient city in Northern Africa, where the Romans mistakenly assumed pomegranates originated. However, pomegranates are believed to have originated from Iran, south-west Pakistan and parts of Afghanistan.
The pomegranate fruit was also given a classical Latin name, Malum granatum, meaning “grainy apple”.
Did you know that pomegranates are botanically classified as a berry? True berries are fleshy fruits that come from a single flower with one ovary and typically have several seeds. Interestingly, bananas, cucumbers and aubergines are also classified as berries, but strawberries and raspberries are not.
Pomegranate: a disease fighter
The pomegranate has also been hailed as a superfruit for its significant nutritional and medicinal properties that are used traditionally to treat conditions from digestive disorders to heart disease.
The fruit, flowers, bark, roots and leaves of pomegranates contain chemicals, such as polyphenols, that can be used to treat a number of diseases and conditions. It is also rich in vitamin C and folic acid.
Ancient cultures understood the health benefits of pomegranates and used it in remedies for digestive disorders, skin disorders, and intestinal parasites, to name a few.
Cutting your pomegranate: a few tips
I love to use pomegranates in salads and to decorate desserts. I find that the easiest way to remove the arils is to cut the fruit in quarters, submerge them in a bowl of water and turn them inside out, pushing out the arils.
This will prevent the crimson juice from splattering all over you. The fibrous parts of the fruit will float to the top.
More cauliflower recipes
If you’re a fan of cauliflower and romanesco, you might like to try these delicious dishes:
Roasted cauliflower with almond sauce
Roasted cauliflower with pangrattato
Romanesco with horseradish ricotta
Best wishes,
Amanda
PS: If you’ve tried this cauliflower, pomegranate and walnut salad or any other recipe from At Amanda’s Table, please let me know how it turned out in the comments below.
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Cauliflower, Pomegranate and Walnut Salad
Ingredients
- 1 large cauliflower (about 800 g)
- 1 red onion, roughly sliced
- 1 zucchini, grated
- 1/4 cabbage, core removed, finely sliced I use a mandolin
- 1/2 cup Italian parsley leaves, roughly chopped
- 1/2 cup mint leaves, roughly chopped
- 1 pomegranate, seeds removed
- 1/2 cup walnuts, lightly toasted and roughly chopped
- 80 ml extra virgin olive oil
- 2 lemons, zest and juice
- 2 tsp ground cumin
- sea salt and black pepper
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 220 ℃ (200℃ fan-forced) and line a tray with baking paper.
- Cut 2/3 of the cauliflower, including the stems, into florets and toss in a large bowl together with the cauliflower leaves, sliced onions, 2 tbsp of the olive oil and 1/4 tsp sea salt.
- Spread out on the oven tray and roast for 25-30 minutes until the cauliflower is golden-brown on top. It will be soft when pierced with a fork when it's cooked through.
- While the cauliflower is cooking, grate the remaining 1/3 of the cauliflower and the zucchini, then add the finely sliced cabbage. Add the lemon
- Whisk the remaining olive oil with 3 tbsp lemon juice, salt and pepper.
- Once the roasted vegetables have cooled completely, toss in the raw vegetables together with the pomegranate arils, herbs and olive oil mixture.
- Transfer to a larger platter or shallow bowl and top with the walnuts. Serve immediately.
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