roasted cauliflower (or brussesls sprouts) with fish sauce vinaigrette and spicy puffed rice

two weeks ago,

when we went to colleen's

for her housewarming party,

i brought black sesame marshmallows,

pimiento cheese sandwiches,

the makings of a gorgonzola

and caramelized onion tart

and no present -

i had left it at home,

on the bed in the second bedroom.

i felt bad. really bad.

but, she gave me my holiday present anyway:

david chang's momofuku.

now, i'm not sure if she knows this,

(and i know he doesn't know it),

but i have a love-hate relationship

with david chang.

it started years ago,

with this article in

new york magazine.

at first, it was that he posed

with a dead pig. just not for me.

but then, as i read the article,

i knew that i should be annoyed

at him for his attitude toward non-meat eaters,

basically mocking them by removing

all things meat-free from the menu after

a bad incident with a haughty vegetarian.

as someone who doesn't eat meat,

i've spent many nights in a restaurant,

choosing between the pasta primavera

and the roasted vegetable sandwich -

and i usually hate every minute of those meals.

but instead of turning my back,

i had a very strong urge

to go to his restaurant and order the

ginger scallion noodles, the only

vegetarian dish he left on his menu.

i loved the fact that he didn't care -

that he loved meat and he was not

going to change who he was to appeal

to the masses. i loved that he was

standing his ground. (can you tell

that at the time, i was feeling

very suppressed in my own life?)

but, i still haven't gone.

instead, last year for larry's birthday,

i decided to to prove i was crazy.

he was turning 30 and i wanted it

to be a great birthday. the birthday.

the one that he would remember

and talk about for a long time to come.

but, if you remember, larry's birthday

is on valentine's day and it is not easy

to plan anything that is simply a birthday

on february 14th - especially when this

particular one fell on a saturday.

so, after saying no to my initial ideas -

a wine expo,

a long weekend away in baltimore,

a barbecue festival weeks away -

i decided that i would get us reservations

at momofuku ko,

willing to go to a place that was,

again, very meat-happy, to give

larry a good birthday.

i'd heard all the stories

(in case you haven't, you can read

about this heart breaker of a restaurant

here, here or here).

but, really i thought, stupidly,

it will be different for me.

reservations can only be made

online, one week before, at 10 am.

so about two weeks before

larry's birthday, i sat at the computer,

set the second hand and practiced

to make sure that my clock was

set to exactly the same time as ko's.

when it said 9:59 and my second hand

showed 8 seconds left until 10,

i clicked. the entire block was covered

in red Xs. i had been shut out

and it was 10:00:18.

i stared at the screen.

how in the....? how could...?

but it was ok, i could brush it off.

this was my first day on the job and

i just needed to get in the groove.

i wasn't worried.

now it was february 8th.

it was a sunday and i had spent

the whole week trying to get in,

only to see just two green checks

the entire time, both instances

ending when i was told

that i was too slow

in my clicking.

but this was the last day -

i hadn't gotten in the whole time

because i was meant to get reservations

for his actual birthday. i just knew it.

i closed the door to our second bedroom,

set the clock to the second hand, practiced

for 14 minutes - i was determined - and when

i hit the button seconds before 10, i saw

a sea of red Xs. i didn't realize it until after,

but i was shaking from the stress of it all.

and then, i burst out crying.

i had put all my eggs in ko's basket and now,

i was plan-less. larry walked in on me crying,

saw the second hand setting on the computer

and somehow, put two and two together.

he swore that it was impossible -

i still think it is not - and that there are computers

set up to crack the reservation system - chang

says this is not true.

in the end,

his birthday was ok

(even good, i hope he would say).

we started at perilla, with an amazing,

quiet brunch, strolled through the village,

frequented a couple of bars

with hard to find beers and ended up

at hill country.

but, i was angry again at chang:

how could he do this to people?

it hurt my brain.

but, it's been a year

and my feelings toward him

have been mellowing,

just as my interest in visiting

one of his restaurants is returning.

it was a perfect time to receive the book.

i opened it up,

flipped a few pages and landed

on the roasted cauliflower with fish sauce vinaigrette.

it had everything i love:

roasted cauliflower,

fish sauce

and an element of weird: rice krispies.

the next page was even better:

the same recipe, but with brussels sprouts.

the next evening, at home,

i read the entire book,

mentally remembering the recipes

that i wanted to make (there are quite

a few meatless options in there),

but deciding that the cauliflower would

be the first, and soon.

the next day,

pithy and cleaver wrote about

the cauliflower - all good things

and a confirmation that i could skip

the one step i was skeptical about,

frying cilantro.

i had already decided,

but that helped.

that weekend,

i went back to mitsuwa,

bought a tiny bottle of schichimi togarashi,

the japanese 7-seasoning spice that is

often used in sushi and that i once

enjoyed sprinkled over vanilla ice cream

in a restaurant. i picked up a head of cauliflower,

some cilantro, mint and when i couldn't

find a bird's eye chile, a serrano.

otherwise, everything was in the house.

(also purchased: beautiful brussels sprouts.

when i saw them, it dawned on me -

i'd have the vinaigrette made,

i could make extra crunchies -

the next night would be the perfect night to

remake the recipe, using the sprouts.)

i made the fish sauce vinaigrette early

in the day - chopped garlic, sliced

the serrano and whisked everything together.

a few hours later,

i busied myself, cutting cilantro stems,

slivering mint, turning a head of cauliflower

into florets and toasting the puffed rice.

i resisted the urge to salt the cauliflower

before, during or after roasting,

figuring that david chang had his reasons,

(yes, i assumed one of them was fish sauce),

but still it went against my roasting beliefs.

when the cauliflower was ready,

i looked toward the vinaigrette.

it was way too much. the recipe didn't

actually specify an amount; i tossed

less than half into the bowl,

added the cauliflower and shook it all together -

there was a lot of vinaigrette left

on the bottom. it was too late to worry.

instead, i sprinkled the roasted florets

with chopped cilantro, added the spicy

puffed rice and took pictures.

and then, i remembered something about

puffed rice. regardless of toasting,

regardless of adding spices,

the little morsels were still just cereal.

cereal that gets just a bit soggy

when doused with milk, or um,

fish sauce vinaigrette.

it's my fault for taking a bunch of

pictures. eaten immediately, probably,

there would have been a much

lower number of casualties.

but, still, it was a solid,

flavor-packed side that we easily

finished between the two of us.

(the fact that i put so much energy

into the cauliflower and very little

thought into a main dish,

didn't hurt either.)

the next night,

i followed chang's instructions

for brussels sprouts,

halving them,

browning them in a skillet

and then finishing them in the oven.

the vinaigrette was even better after

sitting for the day, the herbs were chopped

and the topping browned, so the second

try was even simpler.

on night two, i was smarter, only sprinkling

on a few for the picture (and dumber:

i was in such a hurry to not soften the cereal

that i did not get a passable shot - sorry),

but saved the rest to sprinkle on the sprouts

just as they were served.

we both loved this version -

the brussels sprouts soaked up the

fish sauce mixture and the

crunchy, spicy cereal did wonders

for the texture of the dish.

final verdict?

yum.

overall opinion of the book?

everything looks unbelievably good and

i cannot wait to make the next recipe.

i really shouldn't be surprised -

david chang always wins.

roasted cauliflower with fish sauce vinaigrette and spicy puffed rice

adapted from momofuku

as i mentioned above, i did not fry the cilantro. the recipe called for heating 1/2 cup grapeseed oil (something else i didn't have) and frying 1/2 cup of the leaves. i just did not want to fry or waste the oil (but if you do and think its worth it, tell me). i'm giving you the full version for the vinaigrette, but keep in mind that we still had some left over after making one recipe and using it twice - chang says leftovers are great on meat or tossed with noodles. when i made the mixture, i reduced the sugar and upped the garlic, which i've written below. last thing, these spicy rice krispies are delicious - i'm actively trying to decide what else i can do with it.

i've included the brussels sprouts version in this recipe. chang called for 32 ounces, but i used 20. smallish brussels sprouts are best.

1/3 cup (or more) fish sauce vinaigrette (recipe below)

2 tablespoons very thinly sliced cilantro stems

3 tablespoons thinly sliced mint

1 head cauliflower OR 2 containers (10 ounces each) brussels sprouts

2 tablespoons, plus 1/2 teaspoon canola or grapeseed oil, divided

1/2 cup puffed rice

1/2 teaspoon shichimi togarashi

2 tablespoons chopped cilantro

heat oven to 400˚f.

for cauliflower: core cauliflower; cut into florets. in bowl, combine cauliflower and 2 tablespoons oil. divide cauliflower evenly among two foil-lined baking sheets, spreading to separate (this will ensure that they roast, not steam).

for brussels sprouts: trim and halve brussels sprouts. in large ovenproof skillet over medium, heat 2 tablespoons oil 1 minute. add brussels sprouts, halved side down; cook 2 minutes, or until they begin to brown. transfer skillet to the oven and cook 10-15 minutes, or until tender, but not not soft.

meanwhile, in small bowl, whisk together fish sauce vinaigrette, cilantro stems and mint; set aside.

in small bowl, combine puffed rice, remaining 1/2 teaspoon oil and shichimi togarashi. warm small skillet over medium-high heat; add puffed rice mixture and toast 2-4 minutes, or until you can smell the mixture and it has turned a slightly darker shade, shaking occasionally.

in bowl, combine hot cauliflower (or hot brussels sprouts) and vinaigrette mixture; transfer to serving bowl or plates. sprinke with chopped cilantro and puffed rice mixture.

fish sauce vinaigrette

1/2 cup fish sauce

1/4 cup water

2 tablespoons rice wine vinegar

1 lime, juiced

3 tablespoons sugar

2 cloves garlic, peeled and finely chopped

1 serrano pepper, thinly sliced (or 1 to 3 bird's eye chiles)

in small bowl, whisk together all ingredients. store in tightly covered container for up to one week.