Image by Muffet

The other night I had a craving for cauliflower, which I love, and decided to make it pureed. It was one of the first chilly evenings of the new fall season, so I planned a menu of a whole, roasted chicken, pureed cauliflower and broccoli.

The chicken was done very simply, the way we usually do it in my house, with salt, pepper, fresh rosemary and olive oil on top and a lemon and onion stuffed inside.

The broccoli was also done simply: boiled until just tender and then tossed in some olive oil and chopped garlic. A little salt thrown on top.

The pureed cauliflower, while also very simple, involved a few more steps than the other dishes, so I’ve included the recipe for you:

Pureed Cauliflower

• 1 head of cauliflower
• 1/4 cup of milk
• 1 Tbsp. of butter
• Salt and pepper to taste

Cut cauliflower into florets and steam until florets are easily pierced with a fork. In a blender or food processor, puree cauliflower, 1/4 cup of reserved cooking water, milk and butter until you get the desired texture. Feel free to play around with the amounts of cooking water and milk to get the consistency you like. Serve with salt and pepper.

Another option, which I often do, but did not the other night, is to add freshly grated parmesan during the pureeing process. Fresh parmesan makes everything better in my opinion.

*This recipe is also great for young babies who are just starting on solid foods. It’s probably best to leave out the extra salt for young babies and don’t go too heavy on the pepper, but everything else about the recipe can remain the same.

My kids (ages 6 and 3) were very happy to be served chicken and gobbled that up no problem. Broccoli happens to be the only green vegetable my son (the 3-year-old) really likes, and so he ate a bunch of that. Broccoli also happens to be just about the only green vegetable that my daughter (the 6-year-old) really doesn’t like, so she didn’t eat much, if any, of that.

When it came to the cauliflower, I think both of the kids each had a little taste, but that was it. This is one of those times where the ‘Golden Rule’ of feeding, which states that kids need to see a new food 15 – 20 times before they’ll try it, applies. I don’t serve cauliflower too often, let alone pureed cauliflower, so I’ll give them a pass this time (and maybe the next 14 times as well – but no more than that!).