ROASTED CAULIFLOWER FAGIOLI

SERVES 3 OR 4, WHEN SERVED WITH SIDES

This is my riff on the classic Italian soup (pronounced fah-ZHOOL), usually made with beans and pasta. I replace the pasta with roasted cauliflower to push in some extra plants. It should be a pretty hearty, somewhat-thick soup, the kind you want to eat with garlic bread and a green salad. It tastes even better reheated the next day. Any carrots will work here. Purple carrots help deepen the color. —DEREK

1 head cauliflower, rinsed

2 cups Nana Sarno’s Red Sauce (here)

1 tablespoon everyday olive oil

1 cup diced onion

1 cup diced carrots

2 cloves garlic, minced

2 cups Vegetable Stock (here)

1 can (14 ounces) cannellini beans, rinsed and drained

½ tablespoon sea salt

1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

1 teaspoon granulated garlic

1 bay leaf

1 cup curly or dino kale, ribs removed, leaves rinsed and shredded

1 cup picked fresh flat-leaf parsley leaves, rough chopped

Preheat the oven to 375ºF.

Cut the cauliflower into bite-size florets that your grandmother would eat. Put the florets in a mixing bowl and add 1 cup of the red sauce, tossing just to coat. Spread the florets on a rimmed baking sheet and roast for 30 minutes. The cauliflower should get somewhat soft and the sauce should glaze the florets with a few browned spots here and there.

Meanwhile, heat the oil in a large soup pot over medium heat. Add the onion, carrots, and garlic and sauté until the onion is translucent, 3 minutes. Add the remaining 1 cup red sauce and the stock, beans, salt, black pepper, granulated garlic, and bay leaf. Bring to a boil, then cut the heat to low and simmer until the flavors blend, about 15 minutes.

Add the kale and cook until wilted, another 5 minutes or so.

Stir the roasted cauliflower into the soup along with half of the parsley. Remove the bay leaf. Garnish with the remaining parsley.

OPTIONS

For more heft, add ½ cup ditalini or elbow pasta after the soup comes to a boil. Return to a boil, then cut the heat to low and simmer until the pasta is tender. If the soup gets too thick, stir in a little water or red sauce.

Sprinkle on some Follow Your Heart shredded Parmesan.