Simple, svelte, and delicious: Roasted cauliflower “popcorn”

When I was little, I was confident my cousin Helena could do just about anything. At six, I’d follow her everywhere, soaking in all her teenage wisdom and glamour. Now, of course, the age difference doesn’t seem nearly as vast. In terms of what we’re up against life-wise, we even overlap in places. But here’s the funny thing with family–no matter how much living I do, I think there’s always going to be a part of me that looks to her to show me what’s next, and how it’s done. Visiting her in Vancouver, Canada this week, for example, I got a crash-course in motherhood (“don’t be attached to results”) and–fittingly–a set of kid-friendly good-for-you recipes that are about as disaster-proof as they come. Dishes you can ignore or improvise on, tweak or salvage, and no matter the path you take, they seem to come out better and better. I’m passing along my favorite.

Helena’s Roasted Cauliflower “Popcorn”

Helena’s boys–and, um, I–were crazy about the texture: Crisp and crunchy on the outside (which brings out the salt and olive oil the directions call for) and soft on the inside. The secret is a longer cooking time at a slightly lower heat than what most recipes like this require (she got to the magic numbers–literally–by leaving the cauliflower in too long one night). Also noteworthy, this stuff is great for you. Not just low-fat, but the cauliflower itself is a good source of vitamins C, K, and B6, as well as protein, potassium, fiber and folate.

The whole clan: Helena is on the far right

Ingredients
*1 head of cauliflower, sliced into florets
*Extra virgin olive oil (Helena guesstimates around 1-1 1/2 tablespoons)
*Coarse salt and freshly ground black pepper

Procedure
1) Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.
2) Spread the cauliflower pieces evenly in one layer across a baking pan, drizzle them with oil, and season with salt and pepper. If you think it necessary, toss a little to distribute flavors.
3) Roast for an hour, or until the cauliflower tips are light brown and caramelized.

Additional notes/variations: I did a little poking around, and turned up some versions of this general recipe that added a drizzle of lemon and a clove of garlic (I’d slice very thinly, for texture) right before roasting. Other sources suggested adding a little parmesan cheese (again, I’d go with ultra-thing slices) when the dish is just out of the oven, or mixing in golden raisins (soak them in water for about ten minutes first, to plump them up), nuts, and a pinch of red pepper flakes around the final ten minute cooking mark.