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Monthly Archives: May 2014

A Fresh and Fulfilling Side Dish – Roasted Cauliflower with Lemon-Parsley Dressing

I like cauliflower, but I often have a couple of problems with it. Number one, when it is not in season it can be quite expensive to get a fresh head of cauliflower around here. I usually have to wait until it goes on sale someplace before I pick some up. The second problem I have is that by itself it can be quite bland. If you have ever steamed cauliflower or boiled it you know that it doesn’t always have a lot of flavor to it by itself and a lot of people get put off just by the smell of cauliflower as it is cooking. One of the reasons I do not often buy frozen cauliflower is that it can be pretty tasteless in my opinion unless you do something with it. So when I bought some fresh cauliflower last week, I set out to try to find a good way of cooking it. I love roasting vegetables myself; it brings out much more flavor and you get the chance to add some herbs, dressings or sauces to it to make it even more flavorful. This works particularly well with cauliflower, so I was glad when I found this recipe from Bon Appetit for roasted cauliflower with lemon-parsley dressing and decided to give it a try.

Roasted Cauliflower with Lemon-Parsley Dressing

1 head cauliflower (about 2 pounds), cut into florets
6 tablespoons olive oil, divided
Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper
1 cup fresh flat-leaf parsley leaves
1/2 teaspoon finely grated lemon zest
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees. Toss the cauliflower florets and 4 tablespoons of the olive oil on a rimmed baking sheet; season the cauliflower with salt and pepper. Roast the cauliflower, tossing it occasionally, until it is tender and golden brown, about 25–30 minutes.

Meanwhile, pulse the parsley, the lemon juice, and the remaining 2 tablespoons of the olive oil in a food processor until it is very finely chopped; season the dressing with salt and pepper to taste. Toss the roasted cauliflower with the lemon-parsley mixture and top the cauliflower with the lemon zest.

It is a very simple side dish that really gets the flavors of the cauliflower brought out by the roasting. The lemon dressing really helps to bring it all together as well. You can use this as a side dish for really any type of entrée you are making, such as steak, lamb, chicken or pork. I used it as a side when I made the molasses-glazed pork tenderloin I had made and it went perfectly with the meal. You can also make the dressing ahead of time since it is easy to put together and keep it chilled in the refrigerator until after you have roasted the cauliflower. it makes for a great option for you if you are tired of steaming or boiling.

That’s all I have for today. Check back next time for another recipe. I just want to take a quick moment to thank everyone who has been following along or reading the blog as it continues to grow. it has been a lot of fun for me and I hope you can find some great recipes that you want to try for you and your family. If there is ever anything that you want to see, a question you may have or a recipe of your own you would like to share, please feel free to leave a comment below, send me an e-mail at IguanaFlats@msn.com or catch up to me on my Facebook or Twitter page. Until next time, enjoy the rest of your day and enjoy your meal!

Quick, Easy and Tasty – Molasses-Glazed Roast Pork

01 May

Roast pork is always a favorite meal and when you make pork tenderloins it means you can get an elegant meal on the table pretty quickly. The tenderloins do not take long to cook and take very well to all kinds of sauces and glazes so you get a lot of room to experiment with different things that you like. I had a pork tenderloin in the freezer last week so when we were looking for something a little different for dinner one night I decided to take it out and find a new recipe that we can make fast during the week. I came across this recipe from Williams-Sonoma for a molasses-glazed roast pork tenderloin and it looked really easy to make so I thought I would give it a shot. The original recipe calls for it to be made with sweet potatoes, but I actually didn’t have any on hand that day so I just went with the pork instead.

Molasses-Glazed Roast Pork and Sweet Potatoes

2 pork tenderloins, each 10 to 12 ounces
Coarse kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
1/4 cup light molasses
1/4 cup Dijon mustard
1 tablespoon minced fresh rosemary
1 teaspoon red pepper flakes
1 1/2 pounds orange-fleshed sweet potatoes, unpeeled, cut into 1/2-inch slices
2 1/2 tablespoons olive oil, plus more for brushing
1 shallot, minced
1/2 cup chicken broth

Preheat an oven to 400 degrees. Season the pork tenderloins lightly with salt and black pepper. Set the tenderloins aside.

In a small bowl, stir together the molasses, mustard, rosemary and 1/2 teaspoon of the red pepper flakes. Set aside.

In a large bowl, combine the sweet potatoes, the remaining 1/2 teaspoon of red pepper flakes and 1 1/2 tablespoons of the olive oil. Season the potatoes with salt and black pepper and toss to coat the sweet potatoes evenly. Brush a large rimmed baking sheet with olive oil. Arrange the sweet potatoes on the baking sheet in a single layer, leaving a space in the center of the pan. Transfer the potatoes to the oven and roast them for 15 minutes.

Meanwhile, in a large fry pan over medium-high heat, warm the remaining 1 tablespoon of olive oil. Add the pork tenderloins and brown them on all sides, about 6 minutes total.

Remove the baking sheet from the oven and place the pork in the center; set the fry pan aside. Brush the pork and potatoes with some of the molasses mixture. Return the baking sheet to the oven and roast until the potatoes are tender and an instant-read thermometer inserted into the thickest part of the pork registers 145°F, about 15 minutes. Transfer the pork and potatoes to a warmed platter.

Pour off all but 1 tablespoon of the fat from the fry pan and set the pan over medium-high heat. Add the shallot and cook, stirring frequently to scrape up the browned bits, until the shallot begins to soften, about 3 minutes. Add the remaining molasses mixture and the chicken broth and bring the mixture to a boil, stirring frequently. Simmer until the sauce thickens slightly, about 3 minutes.

Slice the pork and drizzle with the sauce. Serve the pork and potatoes immediately, passing any remaining sauce at the table.

It is a very simple meal that you can prepare and make in under an hour and gives you something different for a weeknight. The molasses glaze tastes great with the pork and I imagine it will taste great with sweet potatoes as well. I served the pork with some of the leftover Tex-Mex rice and beans that I had made as well as a new cauliflower recipe that I will be posting and some homemade focaccia bread that I made (I’ll be posting that recipe as well). It was a nice change of pace for a weeknight dinner that you can put together pretty easily.

That’s all I have for today. Check back next time for another recipe. until then, enjoy the rest of your day and enjoy your meal!