Tuesday 20 February 2018

Vegan Cauliflower Bolognese

Huge cauliflowers sitting in all the vegetable shops here. Got one such colossal cauliflower delivered home and was wondering what to do with it when I happened to see this recipe on https://www.twopeasandtheirpod.com.

Note: Bolognese is pronounced bolo-nees and not bolo-ganesh

I didn't have all the ingredients mentioned on the site above, so I changed a few bits and the result was delicious too. Here's what I added:

1. One cauliflower finely chopped or coarsely ground in the food-processor (It was huge, so I used half)
2. Basil leaves 6-7 (Growing in my balcony)
3. Dried Italian herbs
4. Tomatoes crushed, without seeds (5-6 big)
5. Pink masoor dal 1 cup
6. Red chilli powder 1/2 tspn (add more for a spicier sauce)
7. Grape wine vinegar 1 tspn
8. Salt 1 tspn
9. Pepper 1/2 tspn
10. Ghee 1 tbspn (Til/groundnut oil for vegan recipe)
11. Cooked pasta 3 cups
12. Paneer cubes (omit for vegan recipe)

What I did not add: Onion and garlic (The original recipe called for 1 onion and 3 cloves of garlic, but we were cooking without these and the result was great too, although I am certain that these would add even more flavours.)

Method:
Heat ghee/oil in a big pot. If adding onion and garlic, add at this point and saute for a minute. Add the coarsely ground cauliflower and saute for 2-3 minutes. Add a few chopped basil leaves (reserve some for garnish), crushed tomatoes, lentils, vinegar and chilli powder. Cover with heavy lid and cook for 10 minutes. Add salt, pepper and dried Italian herbs (thyme, oregano, etc). Add the cooked pasta and cook for 5 minutes to let the pasta absorb the juices. Garnish with fresh basil leaves.

Dig in!

We ate the Bolognese with rigatoni, but it will go well with any kind of pasta. There's no strong cauliflower taste and the lentils add an amazing depth to the flavours. I will write and let you know when I try it with onion and garlic.




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