Cauliflower's popularity waxes and wanes. The French considered it worthy of royalty. In India, where vegetarian cooking is high art, cauliflower finds its way into recipes fragrant with warm spices like cumin, coriander and ginger.
The most common use of cauliflower in the U.S. was to serve it as a bed for cheese sauce. That’s changing, thank goodness, and we’re seeing more uses of cauliflower that take advantage of its mild sweetness.
When low-carb diets were at their peak of popularity, cauliflower puree took the place of mashed potatoes on many restaurant menus. I remember when Kevin Rathbun first opened his namesake restaurant; his cauliflower-Parmesan soup was an immediate favorite. The recipe is immortalized on his website, a rich combination of cauliflower, cream and Parmesan cheese. Today, the cauliflower on the menu is a side dish served with brown butter. A recent menu at Local Three featured roasted cauliflower with pine nuts, capers and raisins accompanying diver scallops.
Ben Shipley of Shipley Farm in Cumming likes cauliflower cooked many ways, but his favorite is to eat it raw, served up with a side of ranch dressing. Shipley has been farming his four acres in Cumming since he retired five years ago. He’ll be at the opening of the Alpharetta Farmers Market on April 16 with collards and pecans, but it won’t be long before he has cabbage, broccoli and cauliflower ready to sell. In addition to Alpharetta, Shipley sells his vegetables at the Brookwood and Norcross farmers markets.
His cauliflower was started from seed in his greenhouse in January. By late February and early March, it was ready to go in the ground. He expects to harvest his cauliflower around the middle of April, and, depending on the weather, could have it available for three or four weeks.
“With cauliflower, it’s a one-shot deal,” Shipley said. “You get one head per stalk per plant. I plant 200 to 500 plants each year and it won’t take long to sell all I have.”
Cauliflower isn’t the easiest vegetable to grow in the Atlanta area. From the time it goes into the ground, it takes 45 to 50 days to get to harvest-able size. If the weather is warm but not hot, or cool but not cold, with an average amount of rain, the crop will do fine. Sounds as if, like many of us, cauliflower prefers a nice cool spring with just the right number of March and April showers.
The best cauliflower for eating raw is fresh cauliflower you buy at a local farmers market. Once it gets older, or a little distance from the field, you’re better off cooking it. Roasting and steaming on the stove or in the microwave are the best ways to prepare it. Once cooked, it lends itself to a wide variety of seasonings from lemon juice and delicate herbs to salty and acidic complements like olives, tomato, chiles and garlic.
Keep your cauliflower in the refrigerator until ready to cook. Wrap it in a damp tea towel or paper towel and then store in a perforated plastic bag. It’s the condensation from unventilated plastic that starts those black spots on the white florets and cause the head to decay.
At local farmers markets
Cooking demos:
Saturday, 9:30 a.m. Chef Robert Elliot, Sprig. Morningside Farmers Market, Atlanta. www.morningsidemarket.com
Saturday, 10 a.m. Chef Ron Eyester, Rosebud. Peachtree Road Farmers Market, Atlanta. www.peachtreeroadfarmersmarket.com
Farmers markets opening for the season:
Dunwoody Green Market: April 13. www.dunwoodygreenmarket.com
Downtown Alpharetta Farmers Market: April 16. www.alpharettafarmersmarket.com
Sandy Springs Farmers Market: April 16: www.sandyspringsfarmersmarket.com
Chamblee Farmers Market: April 30. www.chambleefarmersmarket.com
East Lake Farmers Market: May 7. www.elfmarket.org
Green Market for Piedmont Park: May 7. www.piedmontpark.org/programs/green_market.html
For sale
Vegetables: arugula, asparagus, beets, carrots, celery, chard, cherry tomatoes, collards, dandelions, herbs, kale, leeks, lettuce, mache, mint, mustard, parsley, pea tendrils, radishes, spinach, spring onions, strawberries, sweet potatoes, turnips
From local reports
Buffalo Cauliflower Salad
Hands on: 10 minutes
Total time: 50 minutes
Serves: 6
Consider this the vegetarian alternative to buffalo chicken wings. Roasting is one of the most popular ways to prepare this vegetable. This recipe takes that idea one step further. We offer it here as a salad, but you could skip the spinach and serve the florets as an appetizer course.
1 large head cauliflower, cut into florets, about 4 cups
2 tablespoons olive oil
Kosher salt
1/2 cup sour cream
1/4 cup mayonnaise
1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
3 ounces blue cheese, crumbled (about 1/2 cup)
6 cups baby spinach (about 5 ounces)
2 tablespoons butter, melted
1 tablespoon hot sauce, more to taste
Preheat oven to 425 degrees.
On a rimmed baking sheet, spread cauliflower florets and toss with olive oil. Sprinkle generously with salt. Roast until tender, about 35 minutes, stirring occasionally.
While cauliflower is roasting, make dressing by combining sour cream, mayonnaise, vinegar and blue cheese. Refrigerate until ready to serve.
Arrange spinach on serving platter. In a large bowl, combine roasted cauliflower, butter and hot sauce; toss to coat evenly. Serve over spinach with dressing on the side.
Adapted from a recipe at www.seriouseats.com.
Per serving: 234 calories (percent of calories from fat, 81), 6 grams protein, 6 grams carbohydrates, 2 grams fiber, 22 grams fat (9 grams saturated), 33 milligrams cholesterol, 405 milligrams sodium.
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