sicilian cauliflower salad

insalata di rinforzo

TOTAL TIME: 40 minutes

MAKES: 6 servings

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Ingredients

Salt
1 (2½ pound) head cauliflower, cored and cut into 1-inch florets
¼ cup extra-virgin olive oil
2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
2 large roasted red peppers (from a jar), drained and thinly sliced
⅓ cup green olives, pitted
⅓ cup black olives, pitted
⅓ cup cornichon pickles, thinly sliced lengthwise
6 anchovy fillets, rinsed and halved
3 tablespoons salt-packed capers, rinsed, soaked in cold water, then rinsed again
3 tablespoons finely chopped flat-leaf parsley

Instructions

Bring a large pot of salted water to boil. Add cauliflower and cook until tender, 4 to 6 minutes. Drain, transfer to a large bowl and let cool for 10 to 15 minutes. Add oil and vinegar, lightly season with salt and toss together. Add peppers, olives, pickles, anchovy, capers and parsley; toss to combine. Serve at room temperature.

October 2008

keywords:

appetizer, easy, simple, sicily, cauliflower, roasted red peppers, green olives, black olives, cornichon, anchovy, capers

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Comments [5] | Add your comment

Though I like the original, luvs2cook's version sounds delicious. I'll have to give it a whirl.
Posted: April 10, 2011 09:49 by joannesmart
I made some changes to the recipe that I think brightened the flavors a bit. I blanched 3 carrots cut on the bias with the cauliflower and shocked them both in cold water after cooking for 4 minutes. I used lemon juice in place of vinegar. I used the back of fork to mash the anchovies into a paste along with one clove of garlic that was grated to the oil and lemon juice dressing before pouring over cauliflower. I zested the lemon before juicing and mixed the zest in after the salad was completed. I put fresh cracked black pepper over the salad after it was plated. I ommitted the salt because I thought there was enough salt from the anchovies capers and olives that it did not need it.

Posted: April 09, 2011 17:07 by luvs2cook
First time user of this recipe. Couple of things I need to do better. Make sure the mixture of the red wine vinegar and the olive oil is tossed (carefully ) so all the ingredients gets covered otherwise the cauliflower tends to dry out if you don't toss enough. Make sure to wash those capers - - the salt from anchovy is salt enough. thank you
Posted: June 27, 2010 13:15 by lchicka
I don't think I made the same recipe as previous comment because this salad was delicious. My daughter and I have made it for Christmas Eve the past two years. Very Italian and yummy!
Posted: November 06, 2009 22:42 by steelie
This was easy to make, but completely tasteless.
Posted: June 14, 2009 12:33 by smile934