Whenever I’m asked “what’s your favorite cookbook?” my instant response is always The Zuni Café Cookbook by Judy Rodgers. What’s funny about that is that as much as I adore this book — it’s a constant presence on my most prominent cookbook shelf — I rarely, if ever, cook from it.
It’s not that the recipes are bad or overly complicated, it’s just that I enjoy reading from it more than I feel like cooking from it, with one notable exception. That exception is what I used to call my “Heaven and Hell Cauliflower Pasta,” a powerhouse of a recipe on page 203, that I renamed because of its white color (the heaven part) and its devilish combination of anchovies, garlic, red chili flakes, and fennel seeds (the hell).
I’d made that recipe so much, over the years, that — like a game of telephone — the original message got lost somewhere in translation. Last night I decided that instead of going about things the usual way, I’d actually follow the original recipe; one that allows for some tinkering (subbing fresh fennel for the fennel seeds) and some whimsy (“if you don’t feel like bread crumbs, trade black olives for green ones”).
Get it Brown
The first step is the most important step: browning your cauliflower in lots of olive oil. Judy Rodgers is very insistent here: “Don’t sacrifice the 8 to 10 minutes of care it takes to cook the vegetables to the delicately frazzled crispness that gives the dish its great texture and variety.”
Just when the browned cauliflower looks good enough to eat by itself, you send in the troops: 6 cloves of garlic, a tin of anchovies, fennel (I used fresh fennel because I had it), and red chili flakes. As that cooks, you boil the pasta and when it’s al dente, you stir it all together.
The recipe doesn’t mention cheese but I live with someone who’d rather eat a bowlful of grated cheese than any pasta dish, so here it was mandatory: I stirred in big handfuls of Pecorino and Parmesan, along with some chopped parsley. To serve, I sprinkled on toasted breadcrumbs made from day-old bread, per the Zuni recipe.
The Results
How did this differ from my heaven and hell take? Well I was conscious not to add too much water when I added the pasta to the cauliflower, since the recipe says to toss the cauliflower with “the well-drained pasta,” implying that preserving the cauliflower’s texture was key. The breadcrumbs added a nice textural contrast. I will say that the cheese really helped tie everything together; it was the glue that made the cauliflower stick. All-in-all, I’m glad that I made the original recipe; it made me want to cook from my favorite cookbook more often.
Ingredients
Method
- Preheat the oven to 425.
- Toss the breadcrumbs with 2 teaspoons of oil (I also sprinkled with salt), spread on a baking sheet, and bake for about 5 minutes, until golden. Keep the crumbs on the stove top until needed.
- Slice the cauliflower about 1/8 inch thick, and generally lengthwise. Most of the slices will break apart as you produce them, yielding a pile of smooth stem pieces, loose cauliflower crumbs, and a few delicate slabs with stem and flower both. Don’t worry if the slices are of uneven thickness; that will make for more textural variety.
- Warm about 1/4 cup of the oil in a 12-inch skillet over medium heat. Add most of the sliced cauliflower, conveniently leaving the small bits behind on the cutting board for the moment. (They’ll burn if you add them too soon.) The oil should sizzle quietly. Swirl the pan, and leave the vegetables to cook until you see the edge bits browning, about 3 minutes. Salt very lightly and toss or stir and fold gently. Add a few more spoonfuls of oil and scrape the remaining bits of cauliflower into the pan. Add the capers and swirl gently. Continue cooking over medium heat until the edges begin to brown, another few minutes, then give the pan another stir or toss. Don’t stir too soon or to often, or you will get a homogenous, steamy pile of vegetables instead of a crispy, chewy one. Most of the capers and cauliflower crumbs will shrink into crispy confetti-like bits.
- Meanwhile, drop the pasta into 6 quarts of rapidly boiling water seasoned with a scant 2 tablespoons salt (a little more if using kosher salt). Stir, and cook al dente. Set a wide bowl or platter on the stovetop (or in the still-warm oven) to heat.
- Once the mass of cauliflower has shrunken by about one-third and is largely tender, reduce the heat, add another few spoonfuls of oil, and scatter the chopped anchovy, garlic, fennel, and chili over all. Give the vegetables a stir or toss to distribute. Cook for another few minutes, then add the parsley and olives. Taste — every flavor should be clamoring for dominance. Adjust as needed.
- Toss with the well-drained pasta (add cheese here if using) and garnish with the warm, toasted bread crumbs.
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