Oh My Orange Cauliflower!

Recently I was grocery shopping for a few things and this bright orange cauliflower grabbed my attention.  I popped it right into my basket without a second thought, and when I got home I stood there staring down this strange pumpkin imposter wondering if it was natural or just another genetically modified creation, a la the pink pineapple.  We all remember that splashed across our feeds this past summer, right?

Well, I did a little research and it turns out it's A-ok!  Turns out that the golden-orange color comes from a happy naturally accidental occurence that's been happening since the 70s when extra beta carotene sets up shop in its florets.  That gives this "cheddar" cauliflower  a whopping 25% more vitamin A than white cauliflower.   And just to be clear, it's "cheddar" nickname doesn't mean it tastes like cheese.  (I know, it was a secret hope of mine, too.). But it does have a slightly different taste.  Nuttier and a bit sweeter, and they seemed to take a little longer to roast. 

With its awesome fall hue, this cauliflower makes for a showstopper of a side at your Thanksgiving table, as a pumpkin alternative, or even as a meal on its own- which is exactly how I wound up eating it!  The recipe I followed is courtesy of Chef Marcela, co-host of The Kitchen on the Food Network.  It's easy, inexpensive and really half of the ingredients were things I already had sitting in my fridge and spice rack.  

Ingredients:

4 cups cauliflower

3 tablespoons olive oil

Salt and ground pepper

1 tablespoon dried Mexican oregano- I used regular oregano I already had at home

2 tablespoons pickled peppers such as pepperoncini- I left this one out and used just the jalapenos below)

2 tablespoons pickle juice

2 tablespoons grated parmesan 

1 tablespoon chopped pickled jalapenos

1 oz. toasted pine nuts

2 tablespoons chopped parsley

Let me know what you all think!  Enjoy!