Winter is so much more comfortable somewhere indoors, near a source of heat with a hot drink in hand. I struggle to find anything fun about being outside in the streets with numb extremities, and something tells me I’m not alone.
I woke up with a plan, on this particular 7°C Saturday morning. A certain vegetable was on my mind. I walked to Eveleigh Market hoping to find this rather elusive vegetable that has a fairly short season.
And there they were! Not only did I spot a crate full of gorgeous Romanesco cauli’s at one stall, but two others were selling them. Talk about a bounty! First dibs went to the guys from J & R Muscat, a small family-owned vegetable farm in the northwest of Sydney; friendly and helpful with a great selection of fresh and colourful produce.
I was keeping this recipe simple, so nothing else was needed at the markets. I took a short-cut home past McDonaldtown Station where I discovered a row of riberry trees that were full of fruit; immediately factoring the bright pink native Australian fruit into my recipe. I mean, how could I walk straight on past fresh riberries without picking some?
There was already a pomegranate at home, plus a good hunk of harissa butter in the fridge, and everything else is stock pantry stuff. Chilli-phobes may panic at the thought of harissa, but the butter I’ve made doesn’t actually contain a great deal of it. There’s a slight tingle, but nothing that’d make you lunge for a kleenex.
From start to finish, this dish couldn’t take more than 30 minutes, providing the harissa butter is pre-made and ready to go. Toast the almonds, fry the capers, steam the cauli’s, brown the butter and it’s pretty much done after a final flourish of garnishes.
Easy!
Course | Vegetables |
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Ingredients
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Get my recipe for Harissa Butter here.
* If your capers are in salt, rinse under water, drain and dry well. If they are in brine, just drain and dry well. Pour some olive oil into a small pan until 1 cm deep. Heat over medium flame and carefully scatter in the capers, allowing to fry for about 30 seconds, or until light-golden and crisp. Remove from the oil and drain on kitchen towels until cool. Keep the olive oil for dressings or cooking.