Blistered Peppadew Cauliflower

First things first, I am not fancy despite the presentation of this Blistered Peppadew Cauliflower, which can be served straight from the sheet pan or cast iron skillet, like we do on pizza night. I’m not fancy, and this was confirmed last year at an event held at my house, a blogging event. “We’ll send a private chef if you have some friends over.” That was an easy OK. It was all great until the appetizers started rolling out. And then it got really awkward.

You see, I’m pretty picky. You wouldn’t know that because I publish the recipes I like to eat. But I say just as much by what I don’t say. “Do you have any food preferences,” they asked. I told them someone in the group was a vegetarian. It was me. I’m not a vegetarian, of course, but I’ve found that I usually like the surprise vegetarian dishes better than the surprise meat heavy dishes.

The day of, a sizable van shows up with trays and trays of food. Enough for 50 people. I was hosting a small, last minute party that got even smaller from two cancellations. The dinner I thought we were having was actually a huge charcuterie board, filling the entirety of our 6-person dining room table. If you’ve studied my recipes, you’ll notice a light dusting of cheese and meat. My dining room was liberally covered in both. Heh.

There were four of us at the party. On top having a chef, a server handed out fancy meat and cheese apps. To the four of us! Beautiful apps. The thing of Instagram’s dreams. And every time, I had to say, “No, thank you.” I’m a people pleaser, and this is the thing of my nightmares.

It got more awkward, because I ate a peppadew (a sweet piquanté pepper) for the first time and continued to finish every last one on the 72-inch board. I hope no one noticed, but based on the numbers, everyone noticed. I’m telling you this story because I’m not fancy. It also happens to be my awkward peppadew love story.

When we started working on our wood-fired pizza recipe, Kev and I went to Young Joni for research. Young Joni, owned by Ann Kim, serves some of the best pizza in Minneapolis. Though our intent was to study the pizza crust, we left vowing to recreate her wood-fired cauliflower appetizer. While her sauce recipe is composed of several different peppers, I chose to lean on one pepper—the peppadew, just like that aforementioned night.

A quick steam of the florets begins the cooking process. The cauliflower is then coated in a zippy peppadew sauce and finished under a hot oven or an even hotter wood-fired pizza oven. Serve as is, or plate with a shmear of yogurt (the creamy tartness is so welcomed), plus a heavy handed dusting of chopped curly parsley and walnuts.

An awkward night, a love story, and the birth of something really good—the long story short.

Blistered Peppadew Cauliflower












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Prep Time
5 mins



Cook Time
30 mins


Yield

4-6

   
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A blistered cauliflower appetizer coated in a peppadew sauce with a hit of heat, sweetness, and zippy from the vinegar. Serve straight off the pan or the fancy way—over a bed of yogurt. This is what we serve at the start of The Fauxmartha.