I know. Old dog, new tricks. But this bastardization of a favorite Zuni receipt is tasty, and an excllent source of olive oil.
Preheat oven to 450.
Boil water.
Grind up some stale bread to make bread crumbs.*
Split and core a cauliflower. Slice, discarding thicker portions of fibrous limbs, and indifferently crumble the florets.
Toss cauliflower with generous slug of olive oil.
Mince some garlic. How much depends on you. Grind some fennel seed. Toss garlic, fennel seed and dried red pepper flakes with cauliflower, spread in 1 layer on olive oiled cookie sheet, and put in oven.
While this happens, gather about 1/3 cup capers, and pit about 1/2 cup oil cured olives.
After about 15 min, when cauliflower is looking brown, remove from oven, mound up and redistribute in single layer. Return to oven.
Slice up some peperoncini or bananna peppers. Put 1 lb pasta (rotini or something) in the boiling water.
Drain the pasta when it is ready. Toss pasta with cauliflower, olive caper mix.
Toast breadcrumbs with some olive oil on the stovetop.
Just before serving, toss pasta with peppers, and garnish with crumbs. Serve at once. The orig Zuni calls for anchovies, but I forgot, and then realized as I was eating, there was no dairy, meat, or egg involved, which is rare for meals I cook. As the AG observed of his take on this receipt, it probably ain't good for ya, but it tastes good. The peperoncini are a kind of FHMish touch, but they really make this debased version of the Judy Rogers original work.
*I discovered that the grater works much better than the chopping blade for this. Do I win the trip to Cozumel with Chris Kimball?
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