roast cabbage

Don’t get all excited :  this is a somewhat embarrassing excuse for a recipe. It definitely falls under the category of ‘no-recipe’ recipe. But whenever I post these slabs of roast cabbage on Instagram I get so many questions on how to do it that I thought it was worth a blog post.

As I’ve mentioned already, both here and in my newsletter, I’m a bit burnt out in the kitchen. It has a lot to do with all that cooking I did over the last year and a half. But it also has to do with all the over eating I’ve been doing over the last few months. Our tours have started up again and I feel like I’ve been pretty much eating (and drinking) non-stop since September. I’ve eaten my way through Abruzzo, Umbria, Puglia and Sicily. And the prosciutto-parmigiano-tortellini fueled week in Parma was the kicker. Don’t get me wrong, I enjoy every minute and every bite. But while my guests get to experience this for a week, then go home to a more normal eating routine, I was on the Minchilli Feeding Schedule for about 8 weeks straight.

Which means I need something a bit more vegetable forward at the moment. Which is where this non-recipe for roast cabbage comes in.

I don’t know about you, but at this time of year I always have a few back up cabbages in my fridge. They keep forever, and are always available to provide a salad, soup,  or  pasta for a last minute oh-my-god-I-didn’t-plan-dinner dinner.

But this version, where I simply slice the cabbage into slabs and roast them, has got to be my favorite because it works perfectly with my nightly routine.

• Come downstairs from my office to the kitchen at about 7pm.
• Realize Domenico will be home in about 10 minutes and also that I have nothing planned for dinner.
• Remember I have 4 emergency cabbages in the fridge. ( I actually have a back up fridge that holds this kind of stuff. Just in case).
• Preheat oven, prepare cabbage and place in oven.
• Domenico comes home
• I make martinis and we go sit on the pink chairs in the living room.

By the time we finish our drinks dinner is done.

Perfetto!

The cabbage is definitely the main star of the dinner, but don’t worry there is always something else to round it out. Sometimes just some bread that Domenico picks up on his way home. Often I make rice. Sometimes a fried egg goes on top. Or maybe some crispy fried prosicutto. Some nights it’s all of the above. The possibilities are endless. And since the oven is on already, I often roast some other vegetables as well.

The one trick I’ve learned in my ever evolving roast cabbage journey is to season the cabbage well and please make sure you don’t skimp on the olive oil. And you can also be creative when it comes to the salt. I have recently become addicted to Georgian salt. It’s called Svanetian salt and is a mixture of salt, coriander, fenugreek, marigold, garlic, red pepper and caraway seed. It’s hauntingly complex and makes everything – especially roast cabbage and other vegetables – taste amazing. My other seasoning salt of choice is Dario Cecchini’s Profumo di Chianti. Made by the famous butcher in Tuscany to season meat, I find it works wonders on veggies too.