Caponata is a masterclass in balancing sweet, sour and salty, said Anna Jones. It's most often made with aubergine, which you have to fry in lots of olive oil first, making it less than ideal for a weeknight. But this buttery cauliflower version is all done in the oven, and to me it's just as good as the aubergine one. It has the texture of a stew and can be eaten warm as an antipasto – as is most common in Italy – on toast, or tossed through pasta.
Ingredients
- 1kg cauliflower, broken into roughly 4cm florets
- 3 red onions, peeled and cut into eighths
- 3 sticks of celery, cut into 2cm pieces
- extra-virgin olive oil
- 3 tbsp white-wine vinegar
- 2 x 400g tins of plum tomatoes
- 100g green or black olives, stones removed (I use a mixture of both)
- 3 tbsp capers
- 50g raisins
- ½ a bunch of parsley, leaves picked
- warm bread, to serve
Method
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- Preheat the oven to 220°C/200°C fan.
- Put the cauliflower, broken into florets, the 3 red onions (cut into eighths), and the pieces of celery into a large, high-sided baking tray with 1 tablespoon of extra-virgin olive oil, 2 tablespoons of white-wine vinegar and a little sea salt and pepper.
- Toss the mixture to coat, then roast for about 25 minutes, until everything is slightly charred and starting to soften. Remove from the oven.
- Turn the oven down to 200°C/180°C fan. Add the tins of plum tomatoes, breaking them in your hands as you do so, along with 100g of stoned green or black olives, 3 tablespoons of capers and 50g raisins. Give everything a good mix, mashing slightly with a fork, and return to the oven for about 40 minutes, or until everything is soft and sticky.
- Once ready, and while the mix is still piping hot, add another tablespoon of vinegar, toss through a handful of parsley leaves and serve. Finish with a very generous dousing of extra-virgin olive oil to bring it all together.
- Serve with warm bread.
Taken from Easy Wins: 12 flavour hits, 125 delicious recipes, 365 days of good eating by Anna Jones, published by Fourth Estate at £28. To buy from The Week Bookshop for £21.99 (incl. p&p), call 020-3176 3835 or visit theweekbookshop.co.uk.
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