Cauliflowers are one of the most weather-responsive vegetables I know. When its cold, they sulk annoyingly, with hearts the size of 50p pieces protectively concealed from the chill. If its hot, carefully planned progressions are thrown out of the window as they all burst simultaneously into beautiful white curds, which rapidly develop a yellowish tinge when exposed to sunshine, and then develop a "ricey" texture- The seeds can be very expensive, and as heavy feeders of organic matter, they have rightly gained the reputation for being difficult!
Lincolnshire grows some of the best caulis in the UK, and the two varieties we are cutting this week, Skegness and Wainfleet, are named after two seaside resorts well known to the Midlands.
Here are two very interesting un-Lincolnshire recipes that I have adapted from Antonio Carluccio's vegetable book- very different, unexpected, and delicious:
"REINFORCED" CAULIFLOWER ANTIPASTA
Steam cauliflower pieces until it is al dente, and place in a large bowl.
Meanwhile, crush 2 garlic cloves, and add to a dressing containing olive oil, white wine vinegar, 5 finely chopped anchoyy fillets, black pepper. Sprinkle the cauliflower with 20 capers and about 20 pitted green and black olives, add the dressing, and refrigerate.
This salad can only get better as you leave it- if you can! and you can add more cauliflower to the dressing if you've eaten it too fast.
Guaranteed to knock your socks off!
CAULIFLOWER AND PASTA
An unlikey combination to UK eyes that turns out to be fantastic.
Boil together pasta of your choice- I prefer penne or shell-shapes for this recipe- with cauliflower florets.
Meanwhile, fry until golden an onion with dried crumbled chilli, then add chopped bacon, ham, or cheating bacon if preferred, and sliced mushrooms, cook gently till soft.
Drain the pasta mix when soft, stir into the onions, and mix gently, adjusting the seasoning. Grated cheese and chopped parsley can be added here .
This has become a weekday-staple- quick to make, popular and tasty.
DRY WEATHER
The last few weeks of dry weather, while being fantastic for catching up on undone winter work, have really piled on the pressure. When I think back to last spring, continuous rain and cold, it's hard to see the pattern that everyone identifies as global warming. But after last summer we did fill our pit right up in the winter- and its reassuring to see this big expanse of water , which is already going down as we irrigate the small lettuce plants . 2 million gallons of water sounds like a lot- but without rain, it certainly won't last until autumn!
