Lilly’s Table

The Food

Week of February 26, 2012

A high school teacher once declared February the most dreary miserable month and while not wanting to take on his despair, it was easy to reflect the lack of sunny days. In this final week of the ‘dark month’ brighten up your days with comfort foods such as slow roasted Cauliflower, creamy Mac n Veggie, a Brown Butter Fish, a Savory Mushroom Crumble and a sweet & salty Winter Wedge Salad

Cool season cauliflower offers so much in between the roots, stored vegetables and winter greens. Roasting Cauliflower florets brings out just enough caramel essence to become addictive. Take the concept further with by roasting the entire head with a generous splash of garlic & olive oil. It takes less effort for you but more time in the oven. Leftovers of either roasted cauliflower version puree down into a velvety Roasted Cauliflower Soup, aka love in a bowl. The soup becomes more extravagant with a Caramelized Onion, Apple & Hazelnut Salad. If you only do one thing with cauliflower this week, marinate them. The Marinated Cauliflower is a candy-like experience, easy enough for lunches, crumbled onto salads, or solo as a popcorn snack-like experience.

Beets are chopped with cauliflower into the Red + White Quinoa. The magenta winter root is also coated with orange into a Glazed Beet & Arugula Salad and thinly sliced into Beet Crisps for a couple simple sides.

I often rotate through nut & seed butters, my current favorite being sunflower butter, while my husband is making sure we are supplied with a large jar of almond butter. The quick protein fix is scooped onto PBJ Steel Cut Oats and simple sandwiches of Banana Raisin Nut Butter Sandwiches.

May your February end in comforting deliciousness.

Cook seasonally. Eat consciously. Live well,