My Dads Pasta And Cauliflower Recipes

GARLIC BUTTER CAULIFLOWER PASTA WITH PANGRITATA

Steps:

• Dice the bread into small pieces - you want (at least!) 1/2 cup. Spray generously with oil.
• Heat a large skillet over medium high heat. Add the bread crumbs and saute for about 2 minutes until golden brown. Remove from the skillet into a bowl and sprinkle with salt.
• Return the skillet to the stove. Melt the butter then add the oil. When hot, add the smashed garlic cloves and cook for 1 minute until fragrant.
• Add the cauliflower. Cook, stirring occasionally, for around 3 minutes, then add the red onion and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Continue cooking for another 5 minutes, until the cauliflower is beautiful golden brown but still a bit firm.
• Remove the smashed garlic cloves.
• Meanwhile, cook the pasta in salted boiling water - 1 minute less than the recommended cooking time on the packet!
• RESERVE 1/2 cup of the pasta cooking water. Then drain the pasta or use tongs to transfer it directly to the skillet.
• Pour the reserved pasta cooking water into the skillet along with the red chili flakes, a good pinch of salt and pepper. Gently toss the pasta for 1 to 2 minutes, until the water evaporates - you will be left with a luscious coating of sauce on each strand of pasta (this is called emulsification) and the cauliflower will finish cooking.
• Remove from the stove. Grate over zest of 1/2 the lemon and drizzle over about 2 tbsp of lemon juice. Toss quickly.
• Serve, sprinkled with Pangrattato with freshly grated parmesan and parsley, if using.

PASTA WITH CAULIFLOWER

Steps:

• Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Trim the cauliflower and divide it into florets. Add about a tablespoon of salt to the water and boil cauliflower until it is tender but not mushy. Using a slotted spoon or strainer, remove the cauliflower and set it aside. When it is cool enough to handle, chop it roughly into small pieces.
• Meanwhile, in a large deep skillet over medium-low heat, sauté garlic in olive oil, stirring occasionally, until garlic is golden. Start cooking pasta in same pot and same water as was used for the cauliflower.
• When the garlic is ready, add the cauliflower to skillet and turn heat to medium. Cook, stirring occasionally. When pasta is just about done - it should be 2 or 3 minutes short of the way you like it - drain it, reserving about a cup of cooking liquid.
• Add pasta to skillet containing the cauliflower, and toss with a large spoon until they are well combined. Add salt and pepper to taste, along with just enough pasta water to keep the mixture moist but not soupy. When the mixture is hot and the pasta is tender and nicely glazed, mix in the bread crumbs.

BAKED PASTA WITH CAULIFLOWER AND SWISS CHARD

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 425 degrees. In a large, straight-sided skillet, melt half of butter over medium-high. Add garlic, chard stems, cauliflower, and sage. Season with salt and pepper. Cook, stirring, until garlic is golden, 2 minutes. Add 1/2 cup water; cover. Cook until cauliflower is just tender, 5 minutes. Transfer to a bowl; stir in chard leaves.
• Cook pasta in a pot of salted boiling water until al dente. Drain, reserving 1 1/2 cups water. Add remaining butter and flour to skillet; cook over medium-high, whisking, until toasted, 1 minute. Slowly whisk in pasta water until smooth. Bring to a boil; cook, whisking, until mixture coats the back of a spoon, about 2 minutes. Reduce heat to low; whisk in sour cream and 1 1/2 cups cheese. Stir in pasta and chard mixture; top with remaining cheese. Transfer to oven; bake until cheese melts, about 10 minutes. Serve.

CAULIFLOWER-AND-PARMESAN PASTA BAKE

Steps:

• Heat oven to 375°F.
• Cook pasta as directed on package, omitting salt.
• Meanwhile, cook and stir bacon in large skillet over medium heat until crisp. Remove bacon from skillet with slotted spoon; drain on paper towels. Discard all but 2 Tbsp. drippings from skillet. Reserve 1 Tbsp. drippings for later use; return remaining reserved drippings to skillet.
• Add cauliflower to skillet; cook, stirring frequently, 4 to 5 min. or until crisp-tender. Add garlic, flour and pepper; cool and stir 1 min. Stir in milk; cook, stirring frequently, 8 to 10 min. or until thickened. Add 1 cup cheese; cook and stir 1 to 2 min. or until melted. Remove from heat.
• Drain pasta. Add to cauliflower mixture along with the bacon; mix lightly. Spoon into 13x9-inch baking dish sprayed with cooking spray.
• Combine bread crumbs with reserved bacon drippings and remaining cheese; spoon over pasta mixture.
• Bake 10 min. or until cauliflower mixture is heated through and bread crumb topping is golden brown.

SICILIAN CAULIFLOWER PASTA

Steps:

• Bring a pot of salted water to a boil. Add the pasta and cook as the label directs. Reserve 3/4 cup of the cooking water, then drain the pasta. Meanwhile, trim the thick stems off the cauliflower and coarsely grate the florets on the large holes of a box grater (it's fine if some small florets remain whole). Heat the olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the cauliflower, raisins, garlic, red pepper flakes and 1/4 teaspoon salt and cook, stirring occasionally, until the cauliflower is crisp-tender and slightly browned, about 4 minutes. Remove the skillet from the heat and stir in the pasta, parsley, dill, lemon juice, cheese and 1/2 cup of the reserved cooking water. Add more cooking water to loosen, if needed. Season with salt. Serve with more grated cheese.

PASTA AND CAULIFLOWER

Steps:

• Boil cut up pieces of cauliflower in 6 quarts of water until tender.
• Saute long green onions, garlic and about a half a cup of bread crumbs in one stick of butter for about 5 minutes or until breadcrumbs are slightly brown.
• With a slotted spoon remove cauliflower and add to the breadcrumb mixture.
• Stir adding remaining butter and bread crumbs.
• Cook the pasta in the cauliflower water until done. Around 10 minutes.
• Add around a cup of cauliflower water to the breadcrumb mixture to moisten.
• Mix the mostaccioli and cauliflower together .
• Top with freshly grated Parmesan cheese and you ready to serve.
• Not a good time to diet if you make this dish.

MY DAD'S PASTA AND CAULIFLOWER

Steps:

• Boil cauliflower in salted water until tender, but not mushy. Meanwhile, cook pasta separately until al dente. (If you can get the timing right, it's easier to put it in one pot and add the cauliflower a few minutes after the pasta.)
• Mix pasta and cauliflower together after draining, and add all remaining ingredients, mixing well, seasoning to taste.
• If you like, you can mash up some of the cauliflower and mix in a little reserved cooking water to make a bit of a sauce! My family likes this dish with lots of cheese and lots of black pepper, especially.

PASTA WITH CAULIFLOWER AND COLLARDS

Steps:

• In a large pot of boiling salted water, cook pasta according to package instructions. Reserve 1/2 cup pasta water; drain pasta.
• Meanwhile, in a medium pot, heat oil over medium. Add shallot and cook, stirring occasionally, until soft, about 5 minutes. Add wine and cook until almost evaporated, about 5 minutes. Add collards and cook, stirring occasionally, until bright green and crisp-tender, 8 minutes. Add cauliflower, lemon zest, and pasta. Cook until cauliflower and pasta are hot, stirring and adding enough pasta water to create a thin sauce that coats pasta, about 4 minutes. Transfer to a serving bowl and drizzle with oil. Serve immediately.

MY DAD'S PASTA AND CAULIFLOWER

Steps:

• Cut cauliflower, or break into medium sized florets.
• Boil in well-salted water till tender, but not mushy.
• During that time, boil another pot of water for pasta, and cook for recommended time
• When both cauliflower and pasta are cooked, strain in a colander and mix in a large serving bowl or one of the pots.
• Add remaining ingredients and mix well.
• Serve in gargantuan proportions for best result.