3 small-medium heads cauliflower, preferably ones with tight clusters of florets
Unrefined, cold-pressed, extra-virgin olive oil or coconut oil for brushing cauliflower
Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
For the tomatoes:
¼ cup cold-pressed extra-virgin olive oil
4 cloves of garlic, thinly sliced
pinch of crushed red pepper flakes (optional)
2 pounds cherry tomatoes (about 2 ½ -3 pints), stemmed and halved
Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
¼ cup basil leaves
1½ cups ricotta, dairy or vegan
Instructions
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Line a large baking sheet(s) with unbleached parchment paper.
Prepare the cauliflower steaks: Trim away the big outer leaves from the cauliflower and trim the bottom stem end. With the stem end facing up, cut through straight through the middle of the core. Make a cut on the rounded side on each half that isn’t cut, keeping the core intact, giving you two “steaks” with flat sides. Reserve the florets that were cut off for another time. I get 2 "steaks" from each head of cauliflower.
Arrange the cauliflower steaks on prepared baking sheet(s). Brush both sides of the steaks with olive oil and sprinkle one side with sea salt and freshly ground black pepper. Bake for 25-30 minutes, until tender and golden, flipping over halfway if necessary. To ensure the cauliflower is tender throughout, use a pairing knife to pierce the center core of the steak. It should go in easily without any resistance.
In the meantime, prepare the tomatoes. Heat the oil in a large sauté pan over medium low heat. Add the sliced garlic and red pepper flakes and swirl over medium until fragrant. When the garlic just starts to turn golden around the edges, increase the heat to medium and add tomatoes and 2 big pinches of salt plus pepper to taste. Cook tomatoes, stirring, until they start to lose their shape, about 5 minutes. Check seasoning and remove from heat. Tear or slice basil leaves and stir into tomato mixture.
Spread ¼ cup of ricotta on each cauliflower steak. You can either put the baking sheet back in the oven to warm through the ricotta or serve immediately with the tomato mixture spooned on top.
Recipe by Pamela Salzman at https://pamelasalzman.com/cauliflower-steaks-caprese-recipe/