Braised saffron cauliflower, crumbled feta, steamed kasha and pickled vegetable salad

Tam West

The fried kasha topping gives an appetising crunch and toasted flavour to this dish. For a vegetarian dinner party, try my Indian spiced tomato and coconut soup as a starter, and finish with biancomangiare and apple and rhubarb compote for dessert.

Salad

1	Red onion, thinly sliced
2 medium	Carrots, cut into 0.5cm thick sticks
1	Red capsicum, cored, deseeded, thinly sliced
1	Fennel bulb, stalks removed, bulb halved, core cut out, bulb thinly sliced
3	Pink radishes, thinly sliced
4 Tbsp	White wine vinegar
1 tsp	Salt
1 tsp	Sugar
150 g	Green beans, stalk ends cut off, cut in half diagonally, dropped into a saucepan of boiling water for 30 seconds, cooled under cold water and drained well
4 Tbsp	Extra virgin olive oil
1 heart	Baby cos lettuce, thinly sliced

Kasha and cauliflower

1 medium	Cauliflower, leaves removed, bottom thick stalk cut out in a "v" shape but not deep enough for the cauliflower to fall apart (Main)
6 Tbsp	Extra virgin olive oil
2	Red onions, finely chopped
4 cloves	Garlic, finely chopped
½	Preserved lemons, peel only, finely diced
½ tsp	Fennel seeds
1 pinch	Saffron threads, a generous one, soaked in 0.25 cup hot water for 10 minutes
150 ml	Dry white wine
300 ml	Vegetable stock
1	Lemon, juiced
200 g	Creamy feta, crumbled (Main)
1 ¼ cups	Kasha, roasted buckwheat (Main)

Directions

To make the salad

1. Put the onion, carrots, capsicum, fennel, radishes, vinegar, salt and sugar into a non-reactive bowl and reserve for 20 minutes. Just before needed, add the beans, oil and cos leaves and mix well.

To make kasha and cauliflower

1. Heat the oven to 190C.
2. Drop the cauliflower into a large saucepan of well salted water and simmer 15 minutes or until it is tender when a skewer is inserted into the middle. Drain well.
3. Heat 4 tablespoons of the oil in a frying pan over moderate heat and add the onions, garlic, lemon peel and fennel seeds. Fry gently, without browning for 10 minutes or until the onion is soft.
4. Add the saffron mixture and the wine and turn the heat up and let it bubble for 30 seconds.
5. Add the stock and lemon juice and bring to the boil.
6. Pour into an ovenproof casserole and place the cauliflower in the middle. Spoon the onion and stock mix over the cauliflower until well basted.
7. With the cauliflower stalk end down, cover and place in the oven for 40 minutes, uncovering and basting frequently then recovering.
8. Meanwhile, cook the kasha which is like cooking rice. Place 1 cup of the kasha into a saucepan and add enough water to come 1½ cm above the level of the kasha. Bring to a rolling boil then move to your smallest stove element, cover and turn the heat to the lowest setting. Cook without uncovering for any reason for 20 minutes.
9. Remove from the heat and without uncovering, allow to stand for 5 minutes.
10. Uncover and gently fluff up the kasha with a fork. Cover and reserve.
11. Heat the remaining 2 tablespoons of oil in a frying pan. Add the remaining¼cup of kasha and stir-fry until golden brown. Cool on paper towels to soak up excess oil. Reserve.
12. Serve the cauliflower cut into relaxed wedges, with onions and liquid on the kasha with feta and fried kasha sprinkled on top