Cauliflower
Cauliflowers are usually white, the size of a small football and look like a bit of human brain. Super gardener Peter Glazebrook holds the record for the world’s largest ever cauliflower – it was six feet wide. He also holds the world records for beetroot, parsnip and onion.
Nutrition
Cauliflower is another member of the cruciferous vegetable family and contains nearly every vitamin and mineral. It is particularly high in vitamin C making it a great support to our immune system.
Shopping Guide
Look out cauliflower heads that are firm and tightly closed. White varieties should be very pale, try to avoid any heads that show signs of softness or brown spotting to maximise freshness at home.
Storage
To store it, keep it in a bag in the fridge for up to 4 days, just make sure there is a small opening in the bag to allow airflow, and storing it stem up will help keep the head from getting too wet. Only wash it just before using.
Serving suggestions
Cauliflower can be eaten raw, roasted, steamed, boiled or grilled. Cauliflower cheese is a classic for a reason. To prep the cauliflower, slice a head of cauliflower in half, then cut out the stem and pull apart the florets. Chop and roast the stem (along with any leaves), it’s a game changer! Or grate into soup or curry along with any other odds and ends of veg.
Seasonality
Buying veg in season is not only great for the planet, it can be good for your wallet, too! Seasonal veg are often cheaper and frequently taste better, so can be a better time to try with a child as the often sweeter, riper taste is more enjoyable.
Coming In:
June
At Its Best:
July - April
Engage
Here are some of our favourite ways to engage kids with cauliflower:
Arts & Crafts
Start simple with some non-food based engagement. This is especially helpful for a fussier child or those with sensitivities around food.
DOWNLOADS:
For cauliflower, why not try making a cauli face mask?
Science
Science allows for curiosity, play and hands-on experiments. It helps kids to become fascinated with veg – how it looks, reacts, smells, cooks and more. Finding fun and simple experiments to allow kids to play with their veg makes them curious about it and helps them approach it in a positive way.
For cauliflower, why don’t you explore the colour and shape together? Did you know that a head of cauliflower is actually an unopened bunch of flowers? Can you see the tiny buds if you look closely with your eyes or a magnifying glass? If you cut through the middle of the cauliflower and remove the base, can you see the “branch-like” network in the centre connecting all the florets? If you spot a light green “Romanesco cauliflower” at the shops, can you see the repeating spirals and mathematical patterns in it?
Sensory
Sensory exploration can be a wonderful introduction to physically interacting with veg. Turn it into a positive, pressure-free experience by starting off with the golden rules of “You don’t need to try and you don’t need to like.” Reassuring a child that, while they have a chance to taste a veg, they don’t have to, and are not expected to like it if they do, can make them more happy to engage with it.
Why not explore what cauliflower feels and looks like when prepared in different ways? Get a few florets prepared in different ways for them – raw, frozen, boiled or steamed, roasted… Ask your child what they remind them of in different forms, and encourage them to touch and smell them to see if they feel and smell different to each other, too. If they feel up to it, they could even try a little nibble or lick of the different ones to explore the varied tastes and textures, and see which one is their favourite!
Kids in the Kitchen
Children who help to prep and cook veg are more likely to eat it. If you feel your child is ready to help and could benefit from it, keep the stress and mess to a minimum by choosing one simple task for them to do as part of the prep, meaning they can be involved and feel like the recipe is in part ‘theirs’, but also not make the process too much longer or more complicated.
For a younger child, why not get them breaking apart the cauliflower florets with their hands and washing them for you?
For an older child, maybe they could help you cut the cauliflower florets from the base and mix it in a cheese sauce to make a classic cauliflower cheese?
DOWNLOADS:
Use our Kitchen Ninja chart and videos to find simple ways for kids to help in the kitchen.
Your Food
Cauliflower has a flavour and texture that changes hugely depending on how it is prepped – meaning if crunchy strong-tasting raw or soft strong-smelling boiled is not for your child, they may still enjoy sweet and mild roasted cauliflower. Bring out their favourite flavours and textures with our simple sides and by adding cauliflower to some of your family favourite dishes…
Recipes
Serving
The moments before food is offered can be a perfect opportunity for engagement that can help make it more likely a child will eat it!
The first thing to do is remove the pressure. If the veg doesn’t get eaten, it’s not the end of the world. There will be other days, other dinners, other chances. Fun is key here – try not to worry about mess, perfect table manners, or playing with food. Instead, focus on making the process of getting the food to the plates, readying the table, and the actual eating relaxed.
Try making one of our simple cauli sides (like our easy roasted cauliflower) and ask your child to help with one small part of the recipe (like breaking the florets off with their hands, or tossing the cauli in oil and salt and laying out on a baking tray).
While the dinner you are serving it with is cooking, ask your child to design a beautiful menu for the table, with special emphasis on “their” cauli side they helped you make!
The Wonderful World of Veg
Check out our vegepedia. When to buy in-season. How to store them to keep for longer. How to engage children with each veg, and simple ideas of how to prepare and cook them for maximum taste and minimum waste. Select a veg…