[Cauli]flowers on my plate

If you read my post on Wednesday you know that I’ve been drowning in cauliflower lately, Yes, I can only blame myself – or maybe the alluring presentation at the market …?

Anyway, since the days of steamed, just lightly seasoned cauliflower have long been over for me [thank goodness!] I got a little creative in the kitchen. Do you ever get hit with non-creativity once you have an overflow of a certain ingredient on hand while you can’t even stop recipes coming up when you don’t have it on hand? Am I the only one??

First up was what I’d call a non-recipe because it was so simple. The inspiration came through a sample of The Vegg which Rocky, the creator of this product, had kindly offered to any blogger interested in trying it a while ago. In case you haven’t heard of this product yet The Vegg is a vegan egg yolk replacement that you simply blend with some water and can use in both savoury and sweet dishes.

The first idea that came to my mind were breaded vegetables that usually call for egg yolks to help the coating stick. Not having breadcrumbs at hand I came up with a strange but good idea: why not use cereal? I know cornflakes aren’t such an usual coating but what would you say if I told you I used puffed amaranth?? Yes. You’ll notice I use this a lot and rightly so: it’s both a great snack and a versatile ingredient in many dishes.

The best part of breading the cauliflower was letting my inner child out again messing around with yolk, dipping and dripping, finger licking … you get it ;). Though maybe actually not that much finger licking. The Vegg scents eerily similar to the “real deal” which turned me off a little because I’ve never been a fan of runny yolks [yes, I notice I just offened every #yolkporn enthusiast – sorry!]. Don’t worry, though: the taste – at least in this recipe – wasn’t as close.

As I said: it’s more of a non-recipe. I prepared one teaspoon of The Vegg according to package directions. My coating consisted of a´1/4 cup puffed amaranth, 1 tbsp peanut flour, dash of cayenne pepper and nutritional yeast. All nicely dipped and baked for about 25 minutes at 350 °F. A strange but good snack.

Disclaimer: While I received The Vegg for free to review I wasn’t compensated for this post and all opinions are my own.

Now onto the real recipe in this post which I’ll also link up with Kierston’s Recipe Friday.

Ginger fans: This one’s for you. I’m going back and forth between liking ginger and finding it too pungent. Yet – overbuyer alert – when it was on offer I just grabbed a knob of it without any plans in mind [note: not a good idea when trying to avoid overbuying]. Back to why this is for ginger people – no matter which hair colour 😉 -, though: I got a little overzealous when adding it so the curry turned out to have quite a bite. Lesson learned: use only half the amount if you prefer a milder dish.

Originally, I’d meant to prepare a pumpkin curry. But not only did I have an overabundance of cauliflower but carrots, too. And as carrots – at least to me – are an underrated vegetable I thought I’d switch it up and let them shine in this dish. You could always go the pumpkin route – especially if you’re lucky enough to have access to the canned variety! – but it’s worth giving carrots a try.

Gingery Carrot Cauliflower Curry

• 2 cups of  cauliflower, chopped [200 g]
• 1/2 cup of  chickpeas
• 225 grams carrots, chopped
• 1/4 cup of soy milk [use coconut milk by all means if you have it on hand]
• 1 knob of ginger [1/2 thumb in size], minced
• 1 clove of garlic, minced
• 1 small onion
• 1/2 tsp cumin seeds
• 1/4 tsp garam masala
• 1/4 tsp cinnamon
• cayenne pepper
• 1 tsp maple syrup
• 1 tbsp coconut butter [might omit if using coconut milk]

Start out by preparing your carrot puree: Add carrots to a pot and cover with water. Blanch until tender and blend.

Sauté the onion until lightly browned, then add the garlic and ginger and let cook for a little longer.

Sprinkle in the spices, shortly frying them – be careful to avoid burning them.

Stir in the carrot puree. Let the curry simmer on medium heat until the cauliflower is tender.

Add chickpeas and soy milk as well as maple syrup to taste. Season with salt and pepper.

Definitely serve with a side of Khushboo’s oat lolis as a great scooping vehicle – and because they taste awesome while being super simple to prepare. I added cumin seeds to mine. Maybe it’s odd but I really enjoy the burst of flavour when biting onto those seeds.

Happy Friday!

Happiness inducing today: My mum being there for me – on the phone at least – in a very unpleasant situation [think devillish toothache].

Strange but good question [at least coming from a non-egg eater]: What are your favourite uses for egg yolks? Though I might not get to try a lot more before moving I want to make the most of my sample of The Vegg.

What are some of the strangest substitutions you’ve made to recipes before?

Are you a fan of cumin and do you like using whole seeds? I could seriously put it into [almost] every savoury dish.