Roasted Cauliflower Wedges with Clarified Butter and Tahini Sauce by Foodie’s Market Chef Laura Brennan

    

May 4, 2018

 

Roasted cauliflower lives up to its hype; roasting greatly improves the flavor. 

I have always roasted smaller pieces of cauliflower or ‘flowerets’, coated in extra-virgin olive oil in a hot oven, with great success. However, I have less successfully roasted cauliflower ‘slices’ which seem to always fall apart. Hence, the roasted wedge recipe here: each quarter piece is still attached to the core during roasting.  To add flavor, I first prepared clarified butter and used this fat as my cooking medium.  Cauliflower and butter are a complementary pairing and clarifying the butter first, removes the dairy ‘solids’ and enhances the ‘nuttiness’ of the finished dish.

 

 

  • Prep: 30 mins
  • Cook: 40 mins
  • Yields: 4

Ingredients

1-pound unsalted butter

1 head cauliflower, 2 to 2 ½ pounds

Kosher salt

Fresh ground pepper

½ cup tahini paste (prepared ground white sesame seeds)

1 clove garlic, peeled and finely minced

½ to ¾ cup water

1 ½ to 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice

½ teaspoon kosher salt

Optional: ½ teaspoons Aleppo pepper

Directions

Clarified butter

Melt the butter in a saucepan over medium heat. The butter components will separate: the water will evaporate as steam and the milk solids will rise to the top. Cook at a bare simmer and whisk occasionally. Control the heat, you are looking for a simmer. Some chefs skim off the creamy milk solids that rise to the surface, but I prefer to let hem fall to the bottom of the pot. I think you lose more butter in skimming. Once the milk solids start to accumulate on the bottom of the pan, stop whisking. Slowly the butter will begin to become a clear yellow liquid. The solids on the bottom of the pan may be a little bit caramelized and this is OK…this will be a little deeper in flavor and is called ‘ghee’, a staple in Indian cooking.

Let the butter sit for 5 minutes and pour off slowly, through a strainer into another container, leaving the milk solids behind in the pot.

Preheat oven to 375.

Roasted cauliflower

Remove any green leaves from the bottom of the cauliflower and trim off the bottom ¼ inch of the stem/stalk. Cut the cauliflower in half, evenly and then cut each half into 4 even quarters. Season flat/cut sides with kosher salt.

Heat a cast-iron or a heavy sauté pan over medium heat for 2-3 minutes. When hot add 2 or more tablespoons clarified butter to the pan. Work quickly before pan starts to smoke and add the cauliflower pieces. Brown on each cut side and remove pieces to a sheet pan. When you have browned all 8 sides, put the sheet pan in the oven to roast. Check doneness after 25 minutes of roasting by inserting the tip of a paring knife into the largest piece. Turn the pieces over. The cauliflower will probably take another 20 to 25 minutes to fully soften. If your oven has a fan or convection feature you may get some caramelized crispy edges. Delicious.

Tahini sauce

Measure the tahini paste into the bowl of the food processor along with the minced garlic and pinch of salt. With motor running add the water slowly. Add more water as necessary to achieve a smooth and creamy texture. If you are using a very large food processor, you may need to double the amount of ingredients to get the correct consistency. Don’t worry about making too much, it keeps.

Season to taste with more lemon juice if desired. Add salt and a pinch of Aleppo pepper gives the sauce a nice Zing!

Drizzle the roasted wedges with tahini sauce before serving.

Serve warm.

A squeeze of fresh lemon would also be welcomed.

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