Recipe: Roasted Cauliflower & Cabbage

You know what cauliflower and cabbage have in common?  They are cruciferous vegetables, so they are filled with disease fighting compounds, vitamins, fiber and are low in calories.  They also have a strong smell and are not usually liked by kids or people who are veggie resistant.  I am always looking for new ways to cook vegetables, so my family will eat them and make them the larger portion of our dinner plate.

I combined these two by necessity one day, and it was really good.  I usually roast cauliflower alone, but there was too little of it to feed my eating crowd.  There was also some extra shredded cabbage in my fridge from another recipe.  Channeling my maternal Grandma, who would creatively use extra leftover ingredients to create a great dish just so she would not waste food, I roasted the cauliflower and cabbage together.  It was delicious, healthy and easy, which are my three most important criteria for cooking.  I also really try to avoid wasting food because it meant so much to my Grandma.  The upside of this practice is getting to be creative.  The downside is the occasional misstep and forgetting exactly how I made the recipe.

You can also roast zucchini and/or carrots with this combination and it is delicious too.

Ingredients:

• 2 heads of cauliflower, cut into medium sized florets
• 1/4-1/2 head of green shredded cabbage
• 2 Tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
• onion powder, salt and pepper to taste

Method:

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees
2. Spray 2 large baking dishes with cooking spray.  Put an even amount of vegetables in each pan.
3. Toss the vegetables with the olive oil and spices, making sure to evenly season the pieces.  Evenly distribute the vegetables in the pans. 
4. Roast for 20 minutes and check for desired level of crunchiness.  My family likes it softer, so I cook it for at least 30 minutes.
5. Serves 8 people.  The vegetables shrink when roasted, so do not worry that it looks like so much when they are raw.

Stay healthy & well,
Lisa