Mustard Garlic Whole Roasted Cauliflower

Ok, so I may or may not have eaten the whole head of this delicious ‘side-dish’… It was a blur of an evening; I was surrounded by boxes and needed supper… When I opened my fridge and looked at what would be quick and easy to throw together and not distract me from the unpacking I had ahead of me, this head of cauliflower reminded me that a friend had mentioned just how amazing they were roasted whole.

I decided to give it a go.

I highly recommend you trust me – it was amazing.

Like, eat the whole head, amazing…

I made a simple mix of spices to season it, then within the hour it was in my bowl – and then a few minutes later the bowl was empty.  I went back and started picking at the ‘leftovers’ and before I knew it the whole pan was empty… I’m not ashamed… it was roasted perfection.

Turn the oven on to pre-heat to 425°F and gather your ingredients.

First I made crossing slits into the bottom of the stem and inserted a few heads of garlic. Don’t cut too far up because it will split – not that it really matters, but if you want it to stay mostly whole you just want to make a slit big enough to fit the cloves inside.

I love garlic, so I used 4 cloves… they roasted up sweet and soft, and paired perfectly with the slight smokey tang of the mustard glaze.

Mustard glaze:

4 Tbsp EVOO (that's extra virgin olive oil...)
1 tsp sherry
1/8 tsp salt
1/8 tsp thyme
1/2 tsp mustard powder
1/4 tsp tumeric

Mix well and brush over the top of the whole cauliflower head.  I used my handy, dandy cast-iron pan – but are you really surprized to hear that?  I use that thing for almost everything!

Pop it in the pre-heated oven for 20 minutes.

At this point it was obvious my slits were a bit too big, because my head had split in half.  No problem!  I just re-positioned it a bit, centre sides down, and baked for another 10 minutes while I prepared the breaded coating.

Gluten-free breaded topping:

grated goat parmesan cheese (you could easily substitute a non-dairy alternative and make this vegan!)
1/2 tsp parsley flakes
1/8 tsp paprika
1/8 tsp cayenne pepper
1 Tbsp nutritional yeast
2 Tbsp gluten-free breadcrumbs

(I used the PC gluten-free bread crumbs, and was very impressed!  It was my first time using them, and they were as good as any gluten-full version!)

Spread the bread crumb mixture over the now mostly roasted cauliflower.  If your head is larger, you might need to leave it in a little longer – just make sure a fork goes in easily before adding the topping.

Put back in the oven for another ~4-5 minutes until the topping is browned.

That’s it – see, I said it was easy!

Now just try to share it.  I suggest maybe you need to make two if you’re making this to share.  I suspect people will be coming back for seconds!

Let me know if it’s as big a hit on your dinner table!