by Alison Landolt
One of my favorite cookbooks right now is “Zaitoun: Recipes from the Palestinian Kitchen” by Yasmin Khan. “With a strong focus on local, plant-based food and seasonality,” Khan writes, “Palestinian cuisine is, for the most part, cooked simply and served unadorned, with fresh and cooked vegetables and pulses forming the bedrock of most meals.” The freshness and brightness of Palestinian cooking lends itself well to an endometriosis diet. This excludes, of course, gluten-containing foods like pita and couscous, which can easily be swapped for rice or quinoa.
Today’s recipe utilizes another one of my favorites: cauliflower. You may recall from “Beating Endo” that Dr Iris and Dr Amy suggest filling your diet with cruciferous veggies to help metabolize excess estrogen. According to Khan, cauliflower, which is “a prized vegetable in the Palestinian kitchen,” is believed to possess curative properties in Palestinian folklore.
Coupled with anti-inflammatory spices, this Roast Cauliflower Soup recipe, which is inspired by Khan’s recipe, is a #FeedMeFriday must-try!
Ingredients 1 large head cauliflower, about 2 pounds 1 medium white or yellow onion, roughly chopped extra-virgin olive oil 1 ½ teaspoons ground cumin 1 teaspoons ground coriander 1 teaspoon sea salt ½ teaspoon ground black pepper 4 garlic cloves, minced 1 teaspoon ground turmeric 2 ½ cups vegetable or chicken broth
Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.
Cut the cauliflower into small, equal-size florets, and place them, along with any tender leaves and chopped stems, on a baking sheet. Drizzle with a couple tablespoons of olive oil and sprinkle with the salt, pepper, cumin, coriander, and turmeric. Mix everything together to coat and bake 20-25 minutes until cauliflower is cooked through.
Meanwhile, drizzle olive oil into a large saucepan to lightly coat the bottom. Add onions and saute over medium heat until they start to become translucent, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic, and saute a couple more minutes until fragrant, being careful not to let the garlic burn. Add broth and bring to a simmer while cauliflower cooks.
When the cauliflower is done, reserve about a cup of the roasted cauliflower to use as a garnish. Set aside. Add the remaining cauliflower to the soup and let cook for 5 minutes.
Using a hand-held immersion blender, puree the soup until smooth. If you do not have a hand-held blender, allow the soup to cool a little before carefully transferring to a blender or food processor. You may need to work in batches. Once smooth, adjust seasoning as needed.
When you are ready to serve, ladle soup into bowls and top with a spoonful of roast cauliflower.
Alison Landolt is an EFHou cofounder.