In the mid and late 80’s, my weekends were always spent with two good friends and their families. We would rotate the venue amongst our homes – and whoever was the host had to prepare lunch and dinner for the group. It was always such great fun. On one such occasion. my friend’s wife (she is a good friend too) had baked a whole cauliflower. It tasted wonderful. I asked her for the recipe, but she insisted that some things must be kept secrets. As time passed and our meetings became rarer, I had forgotten this dish altogether. It was only a couple of weeks ago that I requested Hari to make me this dish as the season for cauliflower was almost over. We had tried to bake this twice before, many years ago – with disastrous results. This time, Hari promised me that I would have the perfect dish. And it indeed was, bless him.

Ingredients
1 cauliflower of about 500 gms
1 large onion, chopped
2 large tomatoes, chopped
1/2″ piece of ginger
4 garlic cloves
1 tsp red chili powder
1 tsp coriander powder (dhania powder, kothamalli podi)
1/2 tsp turmeric powder (haldi powder, manjal podi)
1/2 tsp cumin powder (jeera powder, jeeraga podi)
1/2 tsp cumin seeds (sabut jeera, jeera
Salt to taste
Method
Remove the stems from the bottom of the cauliflower (but keep it whole)
Steam for 10 minutes
Set aside
Grind ginger, garlic, onion and tomato into a smooth paste
Set aside
Heat a wok and add the cumin seeds
When they begin to splutter, add the paste
Add the chili, coriander, turmeric and cumin powders and salt
Mix well and cook on medium flame for 10 minutes
Remove from flame and cool
Apply this paste on the cauliflower (ensure that you tuck the paste into the cauliflower)
Pre-heat oven to 250^o C for 10 minutes
Place the cauliflower on a baking tray
Bake for 10 minutes
Remove and serve hot with red/brown rice or Indian flat breads
Enjoy!