Orecchiette With Cauliflower And Sun-Dried Tomatos

Name: Orecchiette With Cauliflower And Sun-Dried Tomatos
Ingredients: 1 pound orecchiette pasta; 1 head of cauliflower, broken down into florets and chopped up pieces of stems; extra virgin olive oil, for cooking; 2 garlic cloves, chopped; 2 anchovy filets, chopped; 2 tablespoon parsley, chopped; 1 pepperoncino, diced; 1/2 cup aged pecorino; 1/2 cup toasted breadcrumbs; 1/4 cup finely chopped sun-dried tomatos; colatura d’alici, for finishing

Emily Jacobs|March 3, 2014 10:26 am EST

4 (2 ratings)

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This recipe is one of Chef  Fausto Ferraresi’s favorite  winter pastas. It Colatura d’Alici, a highly concentrated anchovy  syrup produced in the small town of Cetara on the Amalfi coast. Colatura d’Alici and anchovies adds a lot of flavor to  this meatless meal. Recipe courtesy of Chef Fausto Ferraresi of The Leopard at Des Artistes

Servings

3

Ingredients

1 pound orecchiette pasta
1 head of cauliflower, broken down into florets and chopped up pieces of stems
extra virgin olive oil, for cooking
2 garlic cloves, chopped
2 anchovy filets, chopped
2 tablespoon parsley, chopped
1 pepperoncino, diced
1/2 cup aged pecorino
1/2 cup toasted breadcrumbs
1/4 cup finely chopped sun-dried tomatos
colatura d’alici, for finishing

Directions

Cook the pasta and cauliflower together, in order to add more flavor to the final result.
Bring salted water to a boil (careful with salt because the Colatura d’alici is quite potent) and drop in the orecchiette and cauliflower at the same time. (Don't be scared that the cauliflower will be overcooked when the pasta is ready because it's the best way to combine all the flavors together; that being said add cauliflower florets after 6 minutes if you love them crunchy.)
Meanwhile, in a large saucepan gently simmer extra virgin olive oil and the garlic, anchovy, parsley, and perreronicino.
Once all the cauliflower and orecchiette are cooked, strain but not completely, you need some of the water to finish in the pan.
Drop the cauliflower florets and the al dente pasta in the saucepan and toss all ingredients together, until the pasta has soaked up the sauce and is coated with a creamy-looking layer of the cauliflower ragù and use some of its water if the sauce is too thick.
Add peperoncino and pecorino to the pasta/sauce mixture.
In a small bowl, combine the tasted breadcrumbs with the sun-dried tomatoes and just enought olive oil to moisten.
After plating, top the dish with the toasted tomato breadcrumb mixture and colatura d' alici