Sunday 26 September 2021

Cauliflower and chickpea one pot pasta

It is the school holidays.  We are still in lockdown.  I miss the days when we could go to the city, wander around shops, catch a movie and eat lunch somewhere new. Instead we spend it watching too much tv and doing a drive through covid test.  It feels like opportunities for change and novelties are greatly reduced while our activities are so restricted.  I have lots of time but not lots of energy.  The best solution is a meal that lasts for nights on end.  However it gets a bit dull to eat the same thing night after night.  So today I share a one pot pasta I made last week and served in lots of different ways.


I love one pot pastas and was attracted to a recipe for one pot pasta with broccoli and yoghurt because I had yoghurt to use.  I did not have broccoli.  However there was a neglected orange cauliflower in the fridge.  I liked the pasta but it was not the creamy texture I expected.  Instead it was quite soupy with the pasta being served in a broth on the first night.  By the next morning, the pasta had soaked up the broth and was quite flavoursome.  There were quite a few ungarnished bowls of the pasta for lunch or dinner during the week but I also liked serving it in different ways.

I had some leftover rocket, haloumi and candied walnut salad.  So on one night I served the pasta with chopped tomato and salad.  This pasta dish welcomes any salads.  Not that I have had many salads in my kitchen lately.  I knew it is September but I still feel in Winter mode.  It takes a while to warm up to a new season but better produce and more salads are on the way.

Another night I fried up some kale, tomatoes and leftover tofu nuggets.  This pasta makes a nice side dish.  I had almost added kale to the original pasta dish but decided against it because I wanted it blonde and beige.  But adding some colour always make dinner feel more healthy.

On one lunch time I had pasta and spinach on toast with mozzarella melted on top.  I bought a bag of grated mozzarella, cheddar and parmesan which has been great.  You will see below I have been using it a lot.  I even had one night (where I didn't take a photo) when I just baked some leftover pasta with the mozzarella mix on it and loved how crispy it was.  But the above fancy cheese on toast was crisped up under a low heated grill.  And it made a great lunch.

The I baked a potato, scooped out the flesh and mixed it with the pasta, cheese, spinach and some olive oil.  Then I stuffed it back into the potato cup, topped with mozzarella and grilled until it was crispy on top.  I served it with some simple coleslaw.  These baked potatoes were made with Otway Red varieties I bought at the farmers market and were amazing.


Finally I finished the batch of pasta by sprinkling it on a pizza.  I enjoyed the pasta but it needed a bit more oomph.  My idea was that it would benefit from olives and capers.  So when I made the pizza I added some olives and capers as well as cheese and tomato sauce.  

I would have liked to add olives and capers to the pasta but didn't have any on hand.  By the time I made pizza, my first ever delivery from the supermarket had arrived.  Next time I will be more organised.  Naaah, who am I kidding!  I will just hope they are about and if not, I will just look about to see what I have in the kitchen!

More one pot pasta meals on Green Gourmet Giraffe:
One pot pasta with beans and tomato sauce
(v)
One pot pasta with chickpeas and zucchini (v)
Pasta e ceci (v)
Quick one pot mac and cheese
Silverbeet and ravioli stew

Cauliflower and chickpea one pot pasta
Adapted from The Kitchn
Serves about 8

1 small cauliflower, cut into bite-sized florets
400g tin chickpeas, rinsed and drained
350g dried macaroni pasta
4 1/2 cups water
1/2 cup plain Greek yogurt
2 tablespoons olive oil
4 cloves garlic, crushed
1 teaspoon seeded mustard
1 teaspoon garlic salt, plus more to taste
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
!/4 cup chopped green olives stuffed with piementos (optional)
2 tbsp capers (optional)
1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan, plus more for serving

Place everything except the parmesan into a large saucepan.  Stir and bring to the boil.  Simmer for about 8-9 minutes and remove from heat.  Stir in parmesan, olives and capers.  Serve with more parmesan.  

If you want to serve it straight away it is a bit soupy with the liquid not absorbed.  I found that leaving it for half an hour or so helped some more of the liquid soak in.  If you have leftovers the liquid is all soaked in overnight.

NOTES: I did not add olives and capers but think I will next time.  If you don't have macaroni pasta you can use other small pasta such as small shells or ditalini.

On the Stereo:
Don't try this at home: Billy Bragg

1 comment:

  1. I wouldn't mind eating the same pasta on several days when you can have so many variations. Your one pot pasta sounds great and I'm impressed by your creativity for the serving variations. Too bad to hear that you are still in lockdown. I hope that things will improve soon.

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