Chou de Chypre

Here we go, the first of our Christmas feasts for dinner on the Sunday before the big day itself.
We promised ourselves we would not gorge ourselves this festive time, so cauliflower cheese, chunky chips and Swedish-style meatballs seemed perfect.
After all, although you probably wouldn’t think of cauliflower cheese in the same breath as considering time-honored roast beef or even roast turkey, it is still a favourite English dish, and according to the historians has probably been around as a popular meal since the 17th century.
The joy is that it’s so easy to prepare with just a few chunks of lightly cooked cauliflower, topped with a milk-based cheesy sauce and popped in the oven for 15 minutes or so, or simply placed under the grill to give it colour.
They say cauliflower originated in Cyprus and the old French name for it, chou de Chypre literally means Cyprus cabbage.  You can enjoy it as a main meal, as we did today, or as snack, or side dish.  Either way it seemed appropriate after a visit to the pre-Christmas Farmers’ Market in town today.

Not quite a vegetarian meal, because of the addition of meatballs. Nevertheless, light on the stomach, satisfying and an enjoyable gastronomic start to Christmas week.