Roasted Cauliflower with Parmesan Polenta + a White Wine Sauce
Mondays are a really cherished day at my house. Our bar is closed, literally no chance anyone is going to bother me or throw my night for a loop, and for these reasons I love to cherish my Monday nights at home. It’s probably when I do my best weeknight cooking, and probably the only time something in the realm of fancy comes out of my home kitchen. This was a fancy week, and I just wanted to make something fancy, fun, and vegetarian. This Roasted Cauliflower with Parmesan Polenta + a White Wine Sauce was perfect for a weeknight in. Talk about a savory, flavorful, really hits the spot vegetarian meal. This is it! Warm + creamy polenta topped with a big hunk of roasted cauliflower + a tangy, garlicky sauce. Perfect pairings all around, and I’m already planning to whip this one up for a girls night-in I have coming up.
A 30 minute meal, but it will impress your friends
Before I dive in, I cannot stress enough how truly delicious this meal was, and how much Jordan + I enjoyed it. So real question - is there anything better as an adult than a quick + easy meal that actually tastes awesome and not like a deconstructed lean cuisine? For me, the answer is no - a fancy quick + easy meal brings me a certain level of joy that’s incomparable. This is one of those meals. It has so much going on in terms of different flavors and texture, all of which are so freaking good paired together. Creamy polenta + roasted veggies + a bright and tangy sauce. It sounds intense from the onset but the key is roasted veggies, which always make life so much simpler, and roasted veggies being the backbone of the dish keeps it all real simple.
The polenta + pan sauce. Childs play. All so quick + easy to prepare. This is officially an easy weekday, 30 minute meal kind of vibe, but also one I can whip out when someone I want to impress is coming over, and I’m grateful to have it in the repertoire.
Cauliflower steaks are it!
When I think about why I used to love a typical meat dish (I was a big grilled steak or pan seared piece of meat kind of girl) it was all about the sauce. A delicious, pan seared sauce where you de-glaze the pan with wine and more yummy things like butter + garlic + whatever the heck else. I’m a sauce girlie, so a vegetarian main to mop up a good sauce is crucial. Cauliflower has been my work around. Big, thick, chunky slices to create a “cauliflower steak” kind of vibe. It’s so easy to prep, holds up great when roasted in the oven, & is the most perfect vegetarian vessel to mop up a yummy sauce. And this meal is equipped with a really really yummy sauce. Toasted up garlic that’s delightful + fragrant, then simmered with lemon + white wine, and thickened with butter.
The sauce gets drizzled over the roasted cauli + asparagus, which sit on a bed of soft + creamy polenta. Parmesan polenta to be specific, and if you had any doubts that parmesan polenta is heavenly, you need to put those aside. It’s cheesy, savory, decadent. I can say nothing but good, delicious things about it, and it’s perfect for soaking up all the extra sauce. First time ever making polenta, and damn - it was easy. Mix in some cheese + herbs and you’re in business.
Keep it easy - buy the pesto
One little sneaky ingredient hidden in the dish is pesto. And my tip is just buy the pesto to keep it in the realm of quick + easy, but get a good pesto. There are some jarred pestos in this world that should be lit on fire and never see the light of day again. Beware of preservatives + weird, non-fresh flavors. My tip is go to the fancy grocery store, buy the good stuff, and stick to the pestos that are in the refrigerated section + have a shelf life. It’s the only place they belong. I love the kale pesto from TJs, and highly recommend giving that a go.
This was a winner dish - from the flavors to the presentation to literally being the most perfect combo of flavors and textures. A really nice weeknight meal for us at our house that was fun to eat + fun to make, and a great example of a vegetarian meal that’s just really damn good.
For the veggies + polenta
1 head of cauliflower, sliced into 1 inch thick cauliflower steaks
EVOO
salt + pepper
1 bunch of asparagus, trimmed
polenta cooked to package instructions (my polenta calls for 1 c. polenta to 4 c. water)
1 c. grated parmesan
prepared pesto
For the sauce
4 garlic cloves
4 tbsp butter
2 tbsp EVOO
juice of 1 lemon
1 c. dry white wine
3 tbso capers
1 tbsp fresh thyme
Preheat the oven to 375,
Lay your cauliflower pieces on foil lined baking sheet. Drizzle with about 2 tbsp EVOO, sprinkle with a pinch of salt + pepper, and roast for 20 min. As it roasts, toss the asparagus with another tbsp of EVOO and a pinch of salt + pepper. Remove the pan from the oven, add the aspargus, and cook another 25 minutes.
As the veggies roast, add the EVOO + garlic to a sauté pan over medium low heat. When the garlic is fragrant, add the butter and turn to medium high. When it start to simmer, add in the lemon juice, wine, + capers. Let the suace continue to simmer until it reduces by half. Keep warm over low heat.
Last, move to making the polenta. Make the polenta according to package instructions. When it’s cooked, add in 1 c. parmesan and stir until the cheese as melted in.
To assemble the dish, add a scoop of the polenta to your bowl. Place about a tbsp of prepared pesto on top of the polenta, and place the cauli right on top of that. Drizzle the sauce over the top, scoop some of the capers right over that, and nestle some asparagus right on the side. You’re all set!
