This Thanksgiving, we served chocolate cake for dessert. For people who have been around practice a long time, the Monastery's "deep, dark chocolate cake" holds a special place in our practice with food. I was fascinated to notice this Thanksgiving that the sheen has worn off dessert for me. Don't get me wrong -- I enjoyed the cake thoroughly. But the ego-attraction to anything with sugar has faded over the years, enabling me to delight just as completely in cauliflower au gratin or baked butternut squash. As someone who has practiced with a sugar addiction for many years, the recognition of the change was truly an occasion for profound Thanks-giving.
Here is the delicious cauliflower recipe that graced our table. (And for the Chocolate Cake recipe, check out the revised Zen Monastery Cookbook just hot off the presses!)
Gassho,
Rebecca
Cauliflower Au Gratin
5 lb cauliflower
2 cups fine bread crumbs
½ cup grated Parmesan cheese
4 cups grated mozzarella cheese
¼ cup fresh parsley, chopped
Supreme Sauce:
8 tsp olive oil
2/3 cup spelt flour
6 2/3 cups milk
1 1/3 cup water
2 Tbsp vegetable broth powder
4 tsp granulated garlic
1 ½ tsp salt
1/8 tsp white pepper
1/8 tsp nutmeg
For the Supreme Sauce: In a bowl, combine the flour, oil, and enough of the water to make a very thin batter. In a thick bottomed cast iron pot, bring the remaining ingredients to a simmer over medium heat. Add the flour mixture and stir until well blended. Cook the sauce over medium-low heat for 15 minutes, stirring often to prevent burning.
Chop the cauliflower into 1-inch florets and steam until half-cooked, about 6-8 minutes. Place half into a 10 x 16 sprayed casserole dish and pour half of the Supreme Sauce over it. Sprinkle the mozzarella over this. Place the rest of the cauliflower into the dish and the rest of the Supreme Sauce.
Combine the bread crumbs and the Parmesan cheese. Cover the cauliflower with the bread crumb mixture. Cover with aluminum foil and bake for 20 minutes. Uncover and continue to bake for another 10 minutes, until the top is browned and the cauliflower is soft. Garnish with parsley.
Serves 8 – 10.