Cauliflower Cake

Today in Oklahoma we are having blizzard conditions. Jim 

and I are home from work.......and of course,  I'm spending my 

day putting around in the kitchen.

I've been looking at this recipe on the Guardian website for 

a couple of months.  If you haven't heard of the Guardian, it's a

British daily newspaper.  In the food and drink section they 

have some really exciting chefs with really wonderful ideas.   I love 

their website because they have some unique things I might not

regularly think to make,  like this Cauliflower Cake by Yotam 

Ottolenghi.  Ottolenghi's motto is that their food is "familiar and 

straight forward,yet highly innovate".  So true.....

Think of this cake as a crust-less quiche or it even reminds me of

 the Spanish omelette I made a few weeks ago.  It's quite heavy and 

dense and reminded Jim of cornbread.  The rosemary and basil

infuse the egg mixture and give the cake a rich mellow flavor.  This 

would be really fun to adapt to different herbs and maybe even of 

some meat.  I might make it next time with Thyme and some grilled

ham.  

 Cauliflower Cake

Adapted from Yotam Ottolenghi

(printable copy)

1 medium cauliflower

1 large red onion

1/4 cup olive oil

1/2 teaspoon finely chopped rosemary

10 eggs

basil, a good handful chopped

1 1/2 cups plain flour

2 1/2 teaspoons baking powder

1/2 teaspoon turmeric

2 cups parmesan cheese

salt and pepper

butter (for greasing sides of pan)

2 tablespoons sesame seeds

Heat the oven to 350 degrees. Break the cauliflower into medium

florets, put them in a pot with a teaspoon of salt, cover with water

and simmer for 15 minutes, until quite soft. Strain, and leave in the


colander for a few minutes to get rid of all the water.


While the cauliflower’s cooking, prepare the batter. Cut a few thin

rings off one end of the onion and set aside (these will go on top

of the cake); coarsely chop the rest of the onion. 


Heat the oil in a pan and on a low heat sauté the chopped onion 


and rosemary until soft and transparent.. Remove from the heat, 


let cool down, add the eggs and basil, and whisk.

Sift the flour, baking powder and turmeric into a large bowl, and add

 the parmesan, one and a half teaspoons of salt and plenty of black

pepper. Add to the egg mix and whisk to eliminate lumps. Add the

cauliflower and stir gently, trying to keep some florets whole.

Use baking parchment to line the bottom of a 9-inch round 

spring-form pan. Brush the sides with butter, put in the sesame seeds and toss 

them around so they stick to the sides. Pour the cauliflower mix in 

and arrange the onion rings on top.

Bake the cake in the middle of the oven for 45 minutes, until golden

brown and set. Serve just warm or at room temperature.

Yield:  6-8 servings

Cauliflower cake would be perfect to take on a picnic with a 

good bottle of wine.  Funny how I'm thinking of a picnic by the

lake on the coldest day we have had so far this year.  Oh well......

I can at least dream of green grass, warmth and sunshine.........

Share this post