Recipe: Cauliflower Piccata

For this piccata recipe, roasted cauliflower steaks are cooked in a delicious sauce of butter, wine, parsley, lemons and capers. To me, the pairing of bright lemon and briny capers is almost magical; spooning it over tender cauliflower finished with a generous serving of parsley is an easy way to maximize vegetable intake.

This cauliflower piccata is a vegetarian showstopper, a beautiful main dish perfect for holidays yet easy enough to enjoy for weeknight dinners. To create cauliflower “steaks,” remove the outer leaves and the bottom portion of the stem. Then slice the cauliflower into 1-inch-thick slabs. Depending on the size of your cauliflower, you may have only three to four steaks per head. For a main dish, serve the cauliflower steaks with egg noodles or roasted potatoes — and extra piccata sauce.

Cauliflower Piccata

Yield: 2 servings

Ingredients:

1 head cauliflower

2 teaspoons olive oil

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon freshly ground pepper

3 tablespoons unsalted butter

2 small shallots, finely chopped

1/4 cup dry white wine

1/4 cup lemon juice

1/2 cup vegetable stock

2 tablespoons capers, drained

1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper and lightly spray with olive oil.

Remove outer leaves and bottom portion of stem from cauliflower, then slice into 1-inch slabs. Depending on the size of the head, you will have 3-4 steak slabs and the rest will be florets. You’ll roast those along with the slabs.

Place the cauliflower on the prepared baking sheet, drizzle with olive oil, and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Roast for 15-20 minutes, until edges are crisp and slightly browned.

As the cauliflower roasts, melt the butter in a large pan over medium heat. Add the shallots and cook for 4-5 minutes, until crispy. Add in the wine and cook for another 3-4 minutes, deglazing the pan and scraping up any bits of crispy shallots. Add in the lemon juice, vegetable broth and capers, and cook another 2-3 minutes until slightly thickened.

Remove cauliflower from the oven, divide among two plates and top with sauce. Garnish with parsley and serve.

Per serving: Calories 300; Fat 24 g; Cholesterol 48 mg; Sodium 700 mg; Carbohydrate 7 g; Fiber 3 g; Protein 6.5 g

Get more healthy dish ideas:

Alex Caspero MA, RD, RYT is a Registered Dietitian Nutritionist and Yoga Teacher. She is the founder of Delish Knowledge (delishknowledge.com), a resource for healthy, whole-food vegetarian recipes. In her private coaching practice, she helps individuals find their “Happy Weight.”

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