BAKED ROMANESCO BROCCOLI WITH MOZZARELLA AND OLIVES

Baked Romanesco Broccoli With Mozzarella and Olives image

Sicilian cooks make a traditional cauliflower dish, using a pale-green variety that is baked with soft mild sheep's milk cheese and studded with meaty black olives. It can also be made with romanesco broccoli (confusingly called Roman cauliflower in English), the very bright chartreuse-colored cauliflower with pointy spiral florets you find at farmer's markets. But regular white cauliflower is fine, and will give delicious results, too.

Provided by David Tanis

Time 1h

Yield 4 to 6 servings

Number Of Ingredients 11

Ingredients

Salt and pepper
2 or 3 medium heads romanesco broccoli (about 3 pounds)
3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, plus more for baking dish
1 pound fresh mozzarella, sliced
1 cup grated pecorino or Parmesan (about 2 ounces)
1 dozen soft black oil-cured olives, or another type of black olive, pitted
1 teaspoon roughly chopped capers
4 roughly chopped anchovy fillets
4 garlic cloves, minced
1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper, or to taste
Pinch of dried oregano

Steps:

Put a large pot of well-salted water over high heat and bring to a boil. Heat oven to 375 degrees.
Cut broccoli into quarters and trim away the core and any tough bits. Chop quarters into rough 2-inch cubes. Transfer to boiling water and cook for 2 minutes. Drain and rinse with cool water.
Lightly oil an earthenware baking dish. Arrange blanched broccoli in one layer. Season lightly with salt and pepper.
Tear mozzarella slices and scatter over the top, then sprinkle with pecorino. Arrange olives here and there. In a small bowl, stir together capers, anchovy, garlic, red pepper and 3 tablespoons olive oil. Drizzle mixture evenly over the top.
Bake for about 30 minutes, until cheese has browned a bit and broccoli is tender when pierced with a fork. Let rest 10 to 15 minutes before serving. Sprinkle with a good pinch of dried oregano.

Nutrition Facts : @context http, Calories 428, UnsaturatedFat 13 grams, Carbohydrate 11 grams, Fat 29 grams, Fiber 5 grams, Protein 30 grams, SaturatedFat 13 grams, Sodium 770 milligrams, Sugar 8 grams