"Please Mum! Can I have some more?"

Yep, it was like a scene from Oliver Twist in the house the other night, except with a much happier ending, since I'm a lot nicer than that bloke that ran the orphanage, and there was enough for seconds. Thirds however, was not available, as the two of us polished off the whole dish of this comfort food gem before I could even remember to snap a picture of the completed dish, which is why you have the photo below as (faint) proof that it once existed.

I have to say, this was comfort food extraordinaire, and my son's response to the empty dish, and the sorry lack of 'thirds" (and probably 'fourths', given the chance) was "Can you make it again tomorrow?". Rarely are we treated to such enthusiasm, so this will definitely feature on the Farrar table again, even if not tomorrow.

Contrary to the name, it isn't a very spicy dish - but it really all depends on what salsa you use, and what kind of cheese, so it is easy to adapt to all tastes. The recipe below is already an adaptation from the original recipe (on the fabulously named website ibreatheimhungry.com - I mean, how fabulous is that?!) since there the author uses chipotle chiles in adobo sauce mixed into the cauliflower. Our namely-pamby palates baulk at those, I'm afraid.

Chile-Spiked Cauliflower Bake
Adapted from ibreatheimhungry.com
Serves 3 maximum (or two greedy people!)

1 bag riced cauliflower, around 3 cups total (or one head of cauliflower, broken down)
1 TBSP milk
1 TBSP butter
1 clove garlic, minced
1/3 cup Pepper Jack cheese (or whatever cheese you prefer - if you want a kick but can't get Pepper Jack, go for a mild cheddar and add a few red chile flakes)
1 bunch greens (I used Scotch Kale)
olive oil
salt and pepper
1/2 cup mild salsa verde
1/2 cup low fat sour cream
2 Roma tomatoes, diced
1/4 cup of mild pickled peppers from a jar (or pickled jalapeños if you like more heat)
1/2 cup Pepper Jack cheese

1. Preheat oven to 375F (190C).
2.Follow the instructions on the riced cauliflower to steam in the microwave until tender.
3. Put the cauliflower, milk, butter garlic, and 1/3 cup cheese in a food processor and process until smooth. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
4. Prepare the greens/kale buy discarding the thick end of the stems and then chopped the remaining leaves and thinner stems finely. Then saute in a pan over a low heat with some olive oil for a few minutes until tender (time will depend on type of greens, but you want to cook long enough for the stems to be tender too - if the pan dries out and the greens start to stick, then add a slug of vegetable broth).
5. Once the greens are fully cooked, drain off any excess liquid and then stir into the cauliflower mixture (a couple of pulses in the food processor should do it, but not too much, as you don't want the greens pureed).
6. Put the cauliflower mixture into an 8" diameter, ovenproof, deep dish (or equivalent). Top with the salsa, then the chopped tomatoes, then the sour cream. Finish with the peppers and the remaining 1.2 cup of cheese.
7. Bake in the preheated oven for 30-40 minutes until the cheese is starting to turn golden.
8. Serve with a simple green salad and await copious compliments and Oliver Twist moments :-)