Cauliflower Cacciatore

We first discovered this dish at Arlo Grey in Downtown Austin, and since, it’s taken on a life of its own. We’ve cooked it a number of times and it’s slowly evolved (mainly to become easier to cook, if you can believe it). It’s one of our favorite vegetarian dishes and can easily swing vegan (just replace the dairy with something like hummus).

It’s vegetables that eat like a full-on meat lasagna. Dang.

Ingredients

  • 1 head of cauliflower

  • 1lb mini sweet peppers

  • 1 yellow onion, diced

  • 5oz mild goat cheese (we like Chavrie brand)

  • 5oz sour cream

  • jar of cacciatore sauce (we like Cookwell & Company)

  • 1 cup red wine

  • croutons (we make our own)

  • fresh cilantro

Directions

  • Start by pickling half your peppers. Chop all your peppers, put half in a jar, cover with vinegar (and whatever you like, spices, garlic, hot sauce). We’re only looking for a quick pickle here, so do this, shake it up, and get back to the rest of the recipe.

  • Next, start roasting the cauliflower, around 350°, to your desired level of doneness. Keep it firm and you can call it a “cauliflower steak”, cook it down hard and it’ll eat more like a mash. If you’re making your own croutons, add some bread cubes tossed in oil/salt/pepper around the roasting pan.

  • While the cauliflower roasts, stir the goat cheese and sour cream together (and whatever you like, spices, garlic, hot sauce). If it’s too thick, thin it out with a bit of olive oil.

  • Cook the onion and remaining peppers (non-pickled!) in a high heat pan with some olive oil. When softened, add your jar of cacciatore sauce and a cup of red wine. Stir and bring to a simmer, let it go until it gets a bit thicker.

  • To assemble, plate a large dollop of our cream cheese spread, place half a cauliflower head on top, cover with a scoop of cacciatore sauce, top with croutons, cilantro, and our pickled peppers.