Roasted Cauliflower With Capers & Bread Crumbs
Submitted by happyzhangbo
Roasted cauliflower with capers, anchovy-lemon dressing, and toasted garlic bread crumbs. A Sicilian-inspired side that caramelizes sliced cauliflower and finishes it with briny, crunchy punch.
YIELD
6 servingsPREP
10 minCOOK
15 minREADY
30 minForget sad steamed florets. This is cauliflower with opinions. Whole heads get quartered, cored, and sliced a quarter-inch thick so every piece has maximum surface area for browning. A blast in a 450°F (230°C) oven with olive oil and salt turns the edges caramel-crisp and the interiors creamy-tender.
The finishing dressing is pure Sicilian swagger. Anchovy fillets mashed with lemon juice into a savory paste melts into the hot cauliflower without tasting fishy. It just adds a deep, salty umami backbone that makes the dish sing.
Then comes the crunch: toasted Italian bread rubbed with raw garlic, torn into chunks, and pulsed into rough crumbs. Those garlic-scented bread pieces, hot chili flakes, chopped parsley, and briny capers toss through at the end. The result is a side dish that goes from oven to table looking humble and eats like something you’d pay $14 for at an Italian restaurant.
Chef Tips
- Split the cauliflower between two pans. Crowded vegetables steam and stay pale. Spread out, they caramelize and brown.
- Slice the cauliflower vertically through the core so you get a mix of florets and stalk pieces held together in flat slabs. More surface area equals more caramelization.
- Toast the bread under the broiler or in a dry skillet, then rub with garlic while still hot. The bread grates the garlic as it absorbs the flavor.
- Don’t skip the anchovies. They disappear into the dressing and leave only savoriness behind. Capers fill in for brine but not the depth.
Variations
- Finish with a handful of toasted pine nuts or a sprinkle of golden raisins for a fuller Sicilian profile.
- Use gluten-free bread or skip the crumbs and top with toasted panko for a similar crunch.
- Stir in grated parmesan or pecorino right before serving for a salty finish.
Ingredients
Directions
Rinse cauliflower; cut into quarters.
Cut off and discard leaves and cores; cut quarters into ¼ to ½-inch-thick slices.
In a 12- by 17-inch baking pan, mix cauliflower with olive oil and ¼ teaspoon salt.
Spoon half the mixture into another 12- by 17-inch pan and spread mixture in both pans level.
Roast in a 450° regular or convection oven until cauliflower is browned on the edges and tender when pierced, 15 to 20 minutes.
Meanwhile, toast bread slices.
Rub one side of each with garlic clove; discard any remaining garlic.
Let bread cool, then tear into 1-inch chunks.
In a food processor or blender, whirl to coarse crumbs.
In a large bowl, mash anchovies with lemon juice to a coarse paste.
Add cauliflower, parsley, capers, hot chili flakes, and bread crumbs, and mix.
Add salt to taste.
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