Who knew cauliflower could be so, so good?

While walking down Shuk Machene Yehudah with my children, nieces, and nephews, we heard someone shout, “Gush Katif Cauliflower. Try it!” I stopped in my tracks. Technically, after the disengagement, all the farms relocated and are not in Gush Katif anymore (Gush Katif  produce were bug-free greenhouse farms located in Gaza before the disengagement, but the name “Gush Katif” is still associated with bug-free produce). 

When we stopped to see what the woman was talking about, we realized she was selling Cauliflower Fries from a tiny two person storefront. What else did they sell? 

Not much.

Besides for the cauliflower fries, they offered a choice of beer. I wasn’t ordering beer, so we asked for a portion of Cauliflower Fries. 

“Don’t you want to try a sample first?” I looked around at the gaggle of  kids and said, “Isn’t that a bad business move? All the kids will want to sample the fries.” 

She laughed and answered me, “Everyone who tastes it orders a large portion.” 

Large portion it was! Pudgy little fingers began dipping and eating their cauliflower.

My sister whispered to me, “Please don’t let my kids know they are eating a vegetable.”

And then, of course, like I always tend to do, when I got home, I tried to duplicate the fries myself. I also serve these with sweet chili sauce mixed with mayo.

Cauliflower Fries

 

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Serves: serves 4 to 6

Ingredients

• 2 pounds frozen or fresh cauliflower florets
• Oil, for frying
• 1 tablespoon lemon juice
• Kosher or sea salt

Batter:

• 2 eggs
• 1 cup flour
• ½ cup cool water
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon baking soda

Instructions

1. If using frozen cauliflower, fully defrost the cauliflower and pat dry. You can microwave it for 2 minutes, drain and pat dry.
2. In a pot or deep fryer, heat oil to 350ºF.
3. In a medium bowl, combine batter ingredients. Toss a few pieces of cauliflower in batter at a time. Add to hot oil and deep fry until golden. Sprinkle with lemon juice and salt. Serve with mayo dipping sauce (below) and or sweet chili sauce.

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Mayo Dipping Sauce

 

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Serves: 1 cup dipping sauce

Ingredients

• ⅔ cup light mayonnaise
• 2 tablespoons lemon juice
• 2 to 3 tablespoons water
• 3 cloves garlic
• ⅛ teaspoon coarse black pepper
• ¼ to ½ teaspoon salt

Instructions

1. In a blender or using an immersion blender, blend all ingredients together.

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