Dover sole with cauliflower and mushrooms

Dover sole is one of those things, like partridge, that is perfect for one person - a small sole, on the bone, cooks quickly and is the perfect size. My views on sole are very much those of Nigel Slater ("crisp white tablecloths, doddery waiters, and careful, old-fashioned cooking"), and the crisp white tablecloth was very much in evidence at the restaurant where I got the inspiration for this dish. Of course, they caramelised the cauliflower and turned it into a puree, and the mushrooms were chanterelles, but the drizzle of truffle oil in this more than makes up for the lack of an entire brigade of sous-chefs in my version.

I had this as is, but it would work with some crusty bread, new potatoes, a green veg or a few leaves.

Dover sole with cauliflower and mushrooms

4 regular-sized white mushrooms
1/4 cauliflower

1 whole dover sole, around 250g weight, skinned
Plain flour
butter

4 tbs sour cream or creme fraiche
1 tbs capers
1 tbs chopped parsley
drizzle truffle oil

First deal with the veg: break the cauliflower into smallish florets, and toss these and the mushrooms with a little oil and salt. Pop into an oven at around 200 celsius for ten minutes before starting the rest of the cooking. Drink some wine and read a few pages of the paper whilst you're waiting.

After the ten minutes are up, dust your dover sole lightly in flour and heat a tbs of butter in a frying pan. Once the butter is sizzling decently, slide in the sole and leave it for at least 3 minutes until you can see it browning round the edges. Turn over and repeat on the other side, adding a little more butter if necessary. In total it will need 8-10 minutes, depending on weight.

Once the sole is cooked, turn the oven out and pop the sole in with the veg to keep warm for a moment. Unless you've managed to burn the butter, you should just have a few brown crispy bits in the pan, so don't wipe this out. Just tip in the sour cream, leave to bubble for a minute, then add the capers, parsley, and the truffle oil if you have some hanging round (as a rule, I do). Warm for another 30 seconds or so whilst you put the sole and veg onto a plate, and then tip the sauce over.

A more wintery quick pasta

Looking back to this post, I can't help but notice how light and summery they all are. The weather today has been miserable - grey, rainy, and windy - and frankly the last thing I want for dinner is a fresh tomato.

I had some cauliflower in the fridge left over from another recipe (more on that at a later date), and had a vague idea of a robust pasta dish like this, but with a different type of brassica flower. Then I opened the tin of anchovies, nibbled a bit of one (as is my wont when faced with an open tin of the beauties), and decided to go the whole hog and make anchovies as much the star of the show as the cauliflower.

Originally, I made this recipe with a whole tin of anchovies. I think that's too much, and I would classify myself as a serious anchovy fan, but one friend (@peteellender) suggested he'd be up for trying it. If you do give it a go, let me know what you think, and don't say I didn't warn you. Otherwise, the leftover anchovies will last for weeks in the fridge, covered in a thin layer of oil.


Cauliflower and anchovy pasta

75g short pasta shapes (orecchiette would probably be perfect)
100g cauliflower, cut into small florets
1/2 to 2/3 50g tin anchovies, including their oil
pinch chilli flakes
handful roughly chopped parsley

Start the pasta off, and at the same time heat the oil from the anchovies in a frying pan or small saucepan to which you have a lid. Tip in the cauliflower and cover, leaving to brown slightly whilst also steaming in it's own juices. You might need to add a splash or two of water after the first few minutes. Chop the anchovies finely. After 5 minutes, tip the chilli flakes and anchovies into the frying pan, and squish the anchovies until they start melting and forming a sauce. Cover the pan again and cook until your pasta is done; drain the pasta and combine the two with the parsley.

No parmesan; with all the anchovies, you really don't need it!