Lovers of cauliflower and cheese, you need to pay attention. I’ve tasted something that just may rival that cheesy baked cauliflower many of us have grown to adore. It’s a recipe that was brought to my attention by fab food and travel blogger David, of Cocoa & Lavender ; something he and his partner tried whilst in New Orleans, at Domenica, an Italian restaurant by chefs Alon Shaya and John Besh.

Domenica means Sunday in Italian and it’s located in the stunning Roosevelt Hotel; serving up rustic Italian food in a contemporary setting. All I can say is that I’m kicking myself for not knowing about this place when we were in New Orleans late last year.

The cauliflower is served whole. First cooked in an aromatic and beautifully spiced broth, it then gets a blast in a hot oven, burnishing the surface and filling the kitchen with a wonderful aroma.

The cheese component is a purée of feta, cream cheese and goat cheese. Plus some cream and virgin olive oil. I went a little further and added a herb from my back garden – santolina rosmarinifolia – otherwise known as olive herb or holy flax. It’s a small shrub that originates from south west Europe, has thin leaves that look like lavender, but have the aroma of pickled black olives. It was a given that I blended some with the cheeses and used sprigs as garnish. Another thing I added was some toasted pine nuts; something that goes beautifully with all the other flavours.

The cooking liquid can be frozen and reused, if you wish.

Recipe slightly adapted from here

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Baked cauliflower with whipped cheese

This baked cauliflower recipe is based on a dish served at Domenica, in New Orleans.

Course

Vegetables

Cuisine

Italian

Servings

servings

Ingredients

• 2 litres water
• 450 ml dry white wine
• 80 ml olive oil
• 60 g cooking salt
• 3 tbsp lemon juice
• 40 g butter
• 1 tbsp chilli flakes plus extra to garnish
• 1 tbsp dark brown sugar
• 2 bay leaves
• 1 head cauliflower
• 100 g goat cheese
• 80 g cream cheese
• 80 g feta cheese
• 80 ml cream
• 2 tbsp virgin olive oil plus extra to garnish
• Sea salt flakes to garnish
• 3 sprigs olive herb optional
• 2 tbsp pine nuts toasted

Course Vegetables Cuisine Italian Servings servings Ingredients 2 litres water 450 ml dry white wine 80 ml olive oil 60 g cooking salt 3 tbsp lemon juice 40 g butter 1 tbsp chilli flakes plus extra to garnish 1 tbsp dark brown sugar 2 bay leaves 1 head cauliflower 100 g goat cheese 80 g cream cheese 80 g feta cheese 80 ml cream 2 tbsp virgin olive oil plus extra to garnish Sea salt flakes to garnish 3 sprigs olive herb optional 2 tbsp pine nuts toasted

Instructions

1. Place the water, wine, olive oil, cooking salt, lemon juice, butter, chilli, sugar and bay leaves into a large saucepan. Bring to the boil, drop in the cauliflower, and reduce to a simmer. Cook for 8 minutes, then turn over and cook for a further 8-10 minutes, or until just cooked through. Remove from the liquid and drain well.
2. While the cauliflower is boiling, preheat the oven to 250°C.
3. Place the cauliflower on a lightly oiled baking sheet. Drizzle with a little oil and bake in the oven for 15 minutes. Rotate the sheet and cook for a further 15 or 20 minutes, until golden brown on top.
4. While the cauliflower is cooking, process the three cheeses with the cream, virgin olive oil and olive herb, until smooth.
5. To serve, place the roasted cauliflower on a board or platter. Smear the whipped cheese mixture next to it, or serve it in a bowl. Drizzle the cheese with a little virgin olive oil, pine nuts and olive herb. Lightly sprinkle everything with sea salt flakes and chilli flakes. Serve immediately.

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