spicy cauliflower with prawns and spinach

this recipe from the current sainsbury’s magazine caught my eye – cauliflower, prawns and spinach tossed with onions, garlic, chilli plus mustard and cumin seeds. very interesting and a bit unusual, non?

i love cauliflower but david’s not keen so, when means that when i do have it it’s usually a side dish or disguised with a rich cheese sauce (i also disguise it in this easy cauliflower and broccoli soup).

however, if you’re a cauliflower fan and looking for something light and more in keeping with the warmer weather that finally seems to have arrived (hooray!) then this is definitely worth a try. it’s packed with flavour and the chilli adds a wonderful kick. do be careful about not overdoing the chilli and spices – i think the original recipe is a bit heavy-handed given how light the other flavours are.

i ate this on its own, as a light lunch, but it would also be good with rice or flat breads.

spicy cauliflower with prawns and spinach (serves 2)

1 small cauliflower, broken into small florets

1 bay leaf

2 tablespoons olive oil

1 small onion, sliced (i used a couple of shallots instead)

1 clove garlic, chopped

1 slightly heaped teaspoon mustard seeds (the original recipe calls for a tablespoon which is, i think, too much)

1 slightly heaped teaspoon cumin seeds (again, the original recipe calls for a tablespoon)

1 red chilli, finely sliced (take the seeds out if it’s very hot)

200-150g uncooked prawns, cleaned

200g baby spinach

10g butter

sea salt

add the cauliflower and bay leaf to a pan of boiling water and cook until just tender. drain, discard the bay leaf and keep warm.

heat the oil and fry the onion and garlic. when they start to soften add the mustard and cumin seeds plus the chilli, cook for a minute and then add the prawns. stir and fry for a minute or so, when they’ll start to turn pink. add the cauliflower and half the spinach, stir and cover. leave for a minute, stir again and add the rest of the spinach and the butter. cover and leave for a minute or so until the butter has melted and all the spinach wilted. season with a little salt then serve.