Roasted Cauliflower

This Recipe is part of my Perfect End-of-Summer Meal if you like, check out the other dishes that go with this meal: Barbecued Chicken with a Ginger Garlic Maple Sauce and Cumin-Spiced Lentils.

I first got the idea of roasting cauliflower from Molly Weizenberg's book A Homemade Life. And thanks be to Molly! It has now become a staple veggie dish in our house. This is my version. A word to the wise, I am generally not a cauliflower lover but when it's roasted it is dangerously good. I have single-handedly eaten almost an entire head of roasted cauliflower, so you may want to cook extra if you are cooking for cauliflower-lovers.

One head of cauliflower
Olive oil or oil of your choice
Salt and pepper

Preheat oven to 425.

Remove stem and leaves. Place cauliflower with the florets facing upward. Cut in half, through the florets and stem. Place one half with cut side facing up. Cut in wedges, through the root. Try to not have any pieces more than 3 or 4 cms thick or they will not brown as nicely in the oven. Wash cauliflower and dry as well as possible. Place a sheet of parchment paper on a baking sheet. Toss cauliflower with plenty of oil and salt and pepper, place wedges (and any loose florets or teensy pieces) in a single layer on your parchment. Do not overload your pan because your cauliflower will steam and not roast. Roast on bottom rack of oven for 20 minutes, flip the pieces and roast for about another 5-10 minutes. Serves 4.

Alterations:

- If you are making this for the Perfect End of Summer Meal and you are allergic to cauliflower, try roasting another veggie like squash, parsnips or carrots. Or pair the chicken and lentils with a green salad.

Troubleshooting:

- If you find that your cauliflower is steaming instead of browning it was either too wet when it went into the oven or your pan is overcrowded. I often make two pans-full of cauliflower, either at the same time, or in batches. 

- At the 20 minute mark you may want to remove any little pieces of cauliflower from the pan. If you leave them in for too long they may burn.