Cook: Roasted Romanesco Broccoli

Earlier this week, for a change, I ate at home. After a quick stop at Whole Foods I scooped a gorgeous head of Romanesco broccoli, which is really more closely related to cauliflower, and with that we whipped up quinoa tossed with diced tomatoes, feta, Meyer lemon, and parsley, plus some steamed kale with a squeeze of Meyer lemon. I am a big Meyer lemon fan and if there is one piece of fruit that I ALWAYS have in my fruit basket, it's either lemons on Meyer lemons (and actually seasonal Persian limes too recently). My roasted cauliflower or broccoli dish is a tried and true classic I've been making for years, my friends now recreate this recipe at home, even my parents adopted it. Plus, with Romanesco now in season, this dish is even more delicious. Basically, you are just roasting the Romanesco in olive oil with some red pepper flakes, then when it comes out of the oven, a dusting of Parmesan finishes this dish. Try it out:


Roasted Romanesco

1 head Romanesco (or regular broccoli or cauliflower)
2 tablespoons olive oil
salt
pepper
pinch red pepper flakes
2 tablespoons Parmesan

Preheat oven to 400°F. Wash Romanesco, then separate into florets. Lay florets on baking sheet and toss with olive oil. Add a pinch of salt and pepper. Add red pepper flakes and toss to coat. Place baking sheet in oven and bake 15 minutes. Remove from oven and mix Romanesco. Return to oven and cook for 10 more minutes until florets begin to turn golden. Remove from oven, transfer to serving dish, and sprinkle with Parmesan.