Just a quick one ahead of the weekend. My Mum arrives in Cornwall tomorrow and I’m desperately trying to organise the house (and myself) but realised I’d promised you this recipe over on instagram – so here it is. I’ve had a month of ups and downs and everything in between. If you haven’t seen any of my latest posts or ig-stories, you might not realise we are in the midst of the adoption process – we’re just a little over half-way through now, which is crazy. Obviously we are beyond excited to be embarking on the next stage of our lives as family (not that we aren’t already a family) and I will try to share some of this wonderful (and challenging) journey with you but please forgive me if some things remain entirely private. We’re still figuring this all out ourselves and are very conscious of oversharing online … I hope you understand.
For now, I’m in crazy pre-mother mode – worrying about ridiculous things and ‘nesting’. I realise this all sounds very cliché. The office will soon be transformed into a nursery and I’m wrapping my head around what life will look like in a few months time. I’m sure nothing can truly prepare us for what lies ahead. A lot of people are advising us to make the most of our time as a twosome etc. but the truth is we’ve wanted this for the longest while now (I’m talking years) so whilst I appreciate the sentiment, believe me when I tell you we are ready. We’ve had a ball these last 15 years but it’s time for the next phase.
Ok, where was I again? Oh yeah, cauli-rice. So, this is a recipe I created for my recent demo at Wanderlust … it’s incredibly simple but packed full of flavour and texture. I also used the same cauli-rice in some sushi rolls (recipe can be found here) but this vibrant salad was definitely the star of the show … I had a few people come up afterwards and tell me how much they enjoyed it. I always appreciate your feedback, so if you ever do see me at a festival please do come chat with me. Promise I don’t bite and I adore interacting with you guys! If you’ve ever seen me give a demo you will already know I can literally talk for Ireland and love a good natter. Now for that recipe:
what you’ll need
1/2 head cauliflower
1/2 cucumber
1 small yellow pepper
1 x granny smith apple
handful of sultanas or chopped apricots
2 tbsp. mixed seeds
handful of peashoots
1 green chilli, minced
zest & juice 1/2 lemon
2 heaped tsp. belazu rose harissa
extra virgin olive oil
small bunch of flat leaf parsley, roughly chopped
2 sprigs mint, chopped plus more for garnish
salt & pepper
for the cucumber
1/2 cucumber
1 tsp. salt
1 tsp. sugar
1 tbsp. cider vinegar
Juice 1/2 lemon
what you’ll do
Start by prepping the quick pickled cucumber. Finely slice the cucumber and place in a shallow bowl. Add the salt, sugar and cider vinegar, stir to combine and set aside for at least 10 minutes to ‘pickle’.
Break the cauliflower into florets and place in a processor. Pulse until it becomes ‘rice-like’ before transferring to a large mixing bowl. Alternatively you could use a grater.
Season and add the minced chilli and lemon zest. Dice the remaining cucumber, yellow pepper and apple, and add to the bowl along with the roughly chopped herbs, sultanas, seeds, harissa, lemon juice and a good glug of olive oil.
Gently toss to combine before adding the peashoots. Give it a final toss and tip out onto an awaiting board or platter. Top with the pickled cucumber and finish with a little more mint before serving.
Processed with VSCO with av4 preset