Lemony Cauliflower with Black-eyed Peas and Turnip (No Added Fat)

I had a half head of cauliflower that I wanted to use and found that my wife had cooked some black-eyed peas. I also had a turnip that needed to be used. I decided to make a waterless main course, and serve sauteed plantain slices on the side, along with a lovely purple carrot and icicle radish slices. Here is what I did.


Ingredients

• 1/4 cup onion cut into 3/8" cubes
• 1 clove garlic, finely (< 1/8") minced
• Medium turnip, peeled and cut into 1/4" cubes
• About 2 cups of cauliflower florets (about half a head)
• 1/4 of a medium Meyer lemon juiced and remainder chopped into 3/8" cubes (only if organic; if a non-Meyer lemon or lime is used, use just the colored outside zest)
• 1/4 t salt
• 1/4 t freshly ground black pepper
• 1/8 t turmeric
• 1/8 t dried oregano

Process

1. I put, in this order, the onion, garlic, turnip, cauliflower, and black-eyed peas into a large Saladmaster stock pan. I cooked waterlessly - i.e., I covered the pan and heated it on medium high until the vapor release started jiggling, then I reduced the heat to low till the jiggle stopped. I let it cook for about 20 minutes.
2. I then opened the pot, and mixed in the lemon juice and lemon pieces, salt, pepper, turmeric, and oregano.

Results

Dinner was good! I added a bit of jalapeno to my serving. I couldn't taste the turnip, but the cauliflower and lemon worked well with the black-eyed peas.

Ideas for the future

I have not been very good with constrasting colors in presenting my meals. I wish that I had some roasted red bell pepper on hand, as that would have added to the visuals. The main course was good but could have used a little more flavor, perhaps capers or olives. Mustard seed and maybe ground cumin would have been nice, too.

I should explore more ways of cooking with turnips. This was fine to enjoy the nutrition of turnips, but there was no flavor that I could detect coming from the turnips.