Cauliflower Power - Cauliflower & Chestnut au Gratin with Asiago Cream

I don't know 'bout you, but I really love cauliflower.  Especially when it is covered in cheese sauce (mornay).  And nothin' says cheesy mornay lovin' with complete conviction the way an "au Gratin" can.  This is one of my most favorite au Gratins, followed very closely by Pommes de Terre au Dauphinois.  Who can possibly say "No" to Cauliflower and Chestnuts baked in a thyme laced Asiago Cream sauce.  It's utter decadence.  Which is why I only make it once a year.  And Thanksgiving is the perfect Holiday to bust this one out.

I believe I originally got this recipe from the Hastings. Then again I have read so many recipes over the years, it could truly be anyone...  LOL   I know it originally called for 3/4 lb Purple Cauliflower and 1 lb of White Cauliflower.  Me? I prefer to use the 3/4 lb of the Orange Cauliflower instead, but could not find any this year. I also like to change out the Parmigiano-Reggiano for Asiago, though it is quite tasty with Gruyere as well.

I apologize for the final pictures looking kind of messy, but it was Thanksgiving.  In this family, no one is really willing to take a chance that the food might get cold in order for someone to take a picture of it... LOL

Cauliflower and Chestnut au Gratin

1 3/4 lb (795 g) Cauliflower florets, cut into bite sized pieces (or 1 lb White and 3/4 lb Orange)
12 Roasted Chestnuts, chopped
4 cups (945 ml) Heavy Cream (yeah, you know it's gonna be good)
2.6 oz (75 g) (3/4 cup) Asiago d'allevo, freshly grated (and now it's better than good)
1/2 tsp Thyme, chopped
8 oz (225 g) fresh French baguette, torn into 2-inch pieces
2 TB Thyme leaves, chopped
1/4 cup Parsley, chopped
3 TB Chives, chopped
1 1/2 tsp Lemon Zest
1 clove Garlic, finely minced
~1 1/2 tsp Kosher Salt
~3/4 tsp Black Pepper
4 oz (113 g) (1/2 cup) (1 stick) Unsalted Butter, melted (and this makes it awesome)
~1 1/2 tsp Kosher Salt
~1/2 tsp Black Pepper

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
Disassemble the cauliflower head into bite sized pieces...

For reference, that is about this big....

In a medium stockpot, combine Cauliflower, Chestnuts, and Heavy Cream.

Bring to a boil over medium-high heat; immediately reduce heat to low and simmer until Cauliflower is tender. (about 10 to 12 minutes)

Remove cauliflower and chestnuts from cream with a slotted spoon and set aside to cool.

Add shredded Asiago and Thyme to the Cream and bring to a boil over medium flame.

Reduce heat to low and Simmer until cream sauce reduces by half and thickens slightly. (about 15-20 minutes)

Meanwhile, it's time to make the bread crumb topping......

Tear the baguette into 2 inch pieces.

Place in the bowl of a food processor and pulse until breadcrumbs are formed.

Transfer crumbs to a large bowl, then add Thyme, Parsley, Chives, Lemon Zest, Garlic, Salt, and Pepper;

Mix with hands until well combined.

Drizzle with melted Butter and toss with a fork until the crumbs and herbs are evenly coated; set aside.

When the sauce is ready.....
Return cauliflower to Parmigiano-Reggiano Cream mixture and stir to coat well, then season with Salt and Pepper.

Spoon Cauliflower mixture evenly into a 9 x 13 baking.

Top with the Breadcrumb mixture.

Move the baking dish to the oven and bake until topping is golden and sauce is bubbling. (about 4 to 5 minutes)

Serve warm. (Trust me, it doesn't really have a chance to get cold)

Mangia!!
~~

Meatless Monday - Shiitake Mascarpone Cream

Normally I don't really participate in the "Meatless Monday" per se. I am not organized enough to coordinate my lack of animal protein to a specific day. Oh there are plenty of Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays that contain no meat as well as the occasional Friday, Saturday or Sunday. :) But today is just happened to fall that way.

This is the same recipe as the Chantarelle Mascarpone Cream  I made last fall but with 2 important differences.  Gruyere is the cheese of choice this time which just so happens to pair flawlessly with Shiitake mushrooms.  Proof that a good recipe has the ability to adapt and change with the season's offerings, yet remain delicious.  I have changed this so many times, depending on what was available in the market, that I don't even remember what the original recipe was anymore.  Incidentally, this is absolutely divine with Morels and Porcini too.

But, mmmm Shiitakes... The cancer fighting, blood clot preventing, serum cholesterol lowing, high blood pressure stopping wonder mushroom.

As if all that wasn't awesome enough, they are so deliciously "meaty", you won't even notice you aren't eating meat.  Especially when paired with a chunky pasta like rigatoni. So get your weekly dose of Lentinan (Cancer fighter), Lenthionine (Blood clot & High Blood Pressure), Eritadenine (Cholesterol reducer) and various anti-oxidants.   Your body will thank you. 

Rigatoni in Shiitake Mascarpone Cream

1 LB Rigatoni pasta
2 TB Olive Oil
1 Shallots, minced
1/2 Leek, sliced
1 clove garlic, minced
Kosher Salt
Black Pepper
1/2 lb Crimini Mushrooms, sliced
1/2 lb Shiitake Mushroomw, sliced
1/2 cup White wine, like Verdicchio
1/2 cup Vegetable stock (or Mushroom stock)
8 oz Mascarpone cheese, at room temperature
1/2 cup (2 oz) grated Gruyere, plus more for serving
1/4 cup fresh Chives, chopped - Plus more for serving

Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil over high heat.
Add the pasta and cook until al dente, about 10 - 13 minutes.

While the pasta is boiling.........
Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat.

Add the Shallots, Leek and garlic to the pan, seasoning with a little Kosher Salt and Black Pepper.

When the Shallots are soft, about 3 minutes, add the mushrooms to the pan and season with a little more Kosher Salt and Black Pepper, cook for about 5 minutes.

Deglaze the pan with Wine and cook until liquid has evaporated.

Add the vegetable (or mushroom) stock and simmer until liquid is reduced by half.

Remove the pan from the heat and add the mascarpone cheese, stiring until it melts and becomes all unctuously creamy.

Drain the pasta and transfer to a serving bowl.

Pour the mushroom mixture over the pasts along with the Gruyere and Chives.

Toss well, but gently to coat pasta. (add some reserved pasta water, if needed, to smooth the sauce)

Garnish with the More Gruyere and more chopped Chives.

Mangia!!
~~

The UN-Potato - Cauliflower Puree with Greek Yogurt and Chives

Cauliflower tends to be one of those strange vegetables that gets overlooked.  I myself ignore it many times simply because of it's size.  Oh, I see bits and pieces packaged neatly in the grocery store for sale, but they really should be avoided.  The problem is, that once a cauliflower head has been cut up, it begins to degrade rather quickly through oxidation.  Oxidation = Nasty bitter brown cauliflower.   YUCK!  Thus is is that when cooking cauliflower one should always cook an entire intact head.  Which is where the matter of size comes into the picture.  Let's face it, an entire head of cauliflower is a rather large dinner time prospect for a family of less than 6.

But there are times when I must throw caution to the wind and embrace my love of cauliflower, for it must be satiated.  This is one such time.  Just look at that pristine, snow white goodness!

There is a very important consideration to take into account when cooking cauliflower.  Sulfur compounds.  Being a member of the cruciferous family, cauliflower is high in phytonutrients.  In cauliflower's case, some of these break down during the cooking process and form phenylthiocarbamide.  (The particular sulfur compound responsible for the smell" as well as the bitterness that some people taste when eating it.)  I do not taste this bitterness myself, since I am not genetically sensitive to PTC (the same sort condition that causes some to smell" the after effects of Asparagus... It's in the genes)  However, though I cannot "taste" the PTC, I can sure smell it when it's cooking.

This chemical is responsible for another strange phenomenon.  Discoloration.  Thus, one should NEVER cook cauliflower in an Aluminum or Iron pot/pan.  Aluminum react with the PTC and turns cauliflower yellowy brown, while Iron turns cauliflower a sort of sickly bluish-greeny brown.  Totally unappetizing.

One of the cures to reduce the sulfur output is to soak the cauliflower in salt water for 30 minutes before cooking.  This leaches out some, but not all of phytochemicals responsible. In my experience, this seems to work fairly well.  Also, if you are boiling your cauliflower, add 1 cup of milk to the water.  The calcium reduced the sulfur output and sweetens to cauliflower.  If steaming, throw in some walnut shells.  Odd as it sounds, walnut shells absorb sulfur.  (doesn't kitchen science rock?)

OK, science part is over now.....  On with the recipe......

Back in the day... Can I say that?  The Atkins diet was UBER popular, maybe it still is, but I don't know anyone who is currently on it.  So as I was saying... back in the day (8 years ago) there were about 5 people in my office who were religiously following their ketone levels while on the Atkins diet.  For those who don't know, the Atkins diet means death to carbs.  As a pasta lover I find this to be EXTREMELY disconcerting, but that is beside the point.  So while discussing with one of the dieters what they did when they craved mashed potatoes they gave me a recipe for mashed cauliflower.  I tried it, just out of curiosity, and it was all soupy and gross.  Mainly because it called for steamed or boiled cauliflower.  Which made it WAY too watery and thus created a mass of goo when I ran it through the food processor with the cream cheese. 

Now that I am older and wiser, I have come to understand that I should have "roasted" the Cauliflower.  This method produces a much drier curd, thus giving the finished dish more body.  That being said, you can use Greek Yogurt instead of cream cheese and drop the calorie count a little bit.  Add a few chives and you have a very delicious sour cream and chive-esque replacement for mashed potatoes....  even if you aren't on the Atkins diet.  ;)

Greek Yogurt and Chive Cauliflower Mash

1 Cauliflower Head (about 3 lbs)
Olive oil
Kosher Salt
A non-reactive baking dish
Foil
1 cup (8 oz) Greek Yogurt (though this is even better with Crème Fraîche)
White Pepper
optional Chives

Fill a large pot with cold water and add 2-3 TB of Kosher salt and begin removing the leaves from the underside of the cauliflower....

Plunge the cauliflower head (aka: "curd") into the salted water and allow to soak for 30 minutes.

Remove to a plate and allow to drain for about 15 minutes.

Meanwhile, rub down a ceramic, glass or Corningware dish with olive oil.  (No metal - though Stainless would probably be OK) and begin preheating the oven to 450 degrees.

Cut the curds from the stem and place them in the baking dish.

Drizzle with more Olive oil and season with Kosher Salt.

Cover with Aluminum foil (make sure it's not touching any of the curd pieces or they will discolor) and bake for 20 minutes.

Remove foil and bake an additional 15 - 20 minutes or until tender. (It almost seems a shame to process them up)

Remove the baking dish from the oven and scoop the curds into a food processor or a food mill.

Process or mill until smooth, then add the Greek Yogurt and process to combine.

Season with White Pepper and as many Chives as you want.  :)

Serve with hazelnut crusted chicken and mixed greens. 

Mangia!!
~~