Description:
Recipe By: David Rocco
Ingredients:
1 large head of cauliflower
1 medium white onion
1/2 cup (110 ml) grated parmigiano
1/2 cup (110 ml) hard cheese, cubed,
rinds on (optional)
1 bunch of parsley, chopped
2 cups (450 ml) of pureed tomatoes
water
salt QB
pepper QB
Method:
Cut the cauliflower into small pieces and set aside.
Finely chop up one white onion. Look in your fridge. If you have chunks of tough
parmigiano or cheese that hasn’t been properly wrapped, that’s perfect! That’s exactly
what you want. Now is their time to shine. Cube up the tough cheese, rinds and all.
In a fairly large pot, heat up some olive oil and add in your onions. Cook until
they’re translucent. This is your soffritto, or your flavor base. Throw in some diced
parsley and all your cauliflower. Give it a good mix. Add in a generous amount of
salt and pepper , and now add in two cups of pureed tomatoes and half a cup of
water. Give it a good mix, lower your heat to medium put the lid on and let it cook,
checking on it every so often, for 40 minutes. The heat of the pot and the steam will
break up the cauliflower and it will be a beautifully stewed dish. Take it off the heat.
I like to give it a fairly rough mix and mash down any large pieces of cauliflower
with the back of my spoon. Now I add in my pieces of cheese and about half a cup
of parmgiano. Mix it very well and let it rest for 10-15 minutes. It will thicken up.
This tastes best served warm, or at room temperature. The parmigiano will melt and
add flavor. The chunks of cheese will only semi melt and will give you a little cheese
surprise every so often.
If you want to turn this into a main course, you can break up some pasta and throw
it in as well at the beginning of the 40 minutes. Just add more water. Call me an old
auntie, but the cauliflower alone is one of my absolute favorites.
