In August, when I’m deep into my surgery rotation, I’ll be celebrating the four year anniversary of attempting to cook for myself full-time.
Almost four years ago I moved into the Village, Case Western’s newly-built upperclassman undergraduate housing. For the first time I had a stove and an oven a few steps from my bedroom, and I dispensed with the cafeteria meal plan like a child her water wings. I also craigslisted a food processor and a blender, and RTA/biked to the opposite ends of Cleveland to retrieve them.
My first food processor ever was a tiny minion-sized thing that was supposed to be used for chopping garlic and shredding parmesan. It choked on canned chickpeas, and if I ran it for more than half a minute it would emit a smell that I can only describe as melting Barbies. But it was mine, and together we made many a grainy hummus.
Last year I inherited an awesome processor/blender from my mom. I repurposed my old blender into a bedroom lamp, and I think the only remnant of the food processor is a blade lingering in the utensil drawer.
Four years since I started cooking, the only things that are consistently edible are family recipes. The rest are just stabs in the dark with a butter knife. However, after 5-6 jabs at this dish I have finally produced a tasty version of mashed cauliflower. You need a food processor to make it. But the results are creamy and satisfying, the kind of thing that makes all of this personal growth worth the effort.
Ingredients
- 1/2 head cauliflower (I’m going to have to estimate the other ingredients because I actually used a couple of handfuls of florets and the core of the vegetable)
- 1.5 Tbsp butter
- 1 Tbsp sesame oil
- 3 cloves garlic, sliced
- salt to taste
- grated parmesan, breadcrumbs, and freshly ground black pepper for the top
this looks amazing! Here is my favorite cauliflower recipe. simple, yet delicious!
Love 101cookbooks! I’m posting her black bean brownies soon….with a few substitutions
oh man, i remember your adventures to collect craigslist items… there was some reason why i couldn’t go with you and i was scared to death for you…taking your bike on the rta, then riding another couple of miles to people’s houses… eek.
anyway. this looks delicious. and since i was just reading an article about how much sugar is in potatoes… i’m totally trying this out.
I remember you and Stefan came to visit soon after I got back! That was such an exhausting day…carrying my bike up the stairs at the RTA stations was no joke. = love having a car
I WILL make recipe. I’ve been wanting to try this idea for a while but I think I needed someone to promise me that it wouldn’t be a watery/grainy mess.
What i most wanted to comment on though, is the visual ( and olfactory) imagery of melting Barbies and your mini cuisinart lamp. Can we have a picture of the latter?
Please let me know how it turns out by commenting again…I just want to know the proportions work out. The consistency is definitely “lighter” than potatoes (not sure why I just put that in quotations, that wasn’t a poetic interpretation). But they hold together, esp after the broil.
I made these, but in place of bread crumbs, I used crushed cashew and almond and a very small amount of Parmesan. I don’t mind that the texture isn’t smooth and creamy like potatoes, I still think it’s great. The texture sort of reminds me of turnip once they are prepared and ready to go. Great low carb option that makes you feel like you’re eating something bad. 😉
I love the cashew idea! I will need to try that.
And I totally agree with the naughty-but-nice food option. I find that when I make something (regardless of the healthiness or the quality) I tend to eat the whole thing…very bad at sharing, terrible at actually serving myself a portion on a plate. Many-a-dish has been cooked and eaten while standing over the stove.