Purple Cauliflower and Pear Salad with Raspberry Vinaigrette

Purple cauliflowers are not just beautiful. They are also antioxidants-rich (anthocyanin) vegetables with chockfull of nutrients. I can't seem to pass them up at the farmer's market.

With white cauliflower, I like to roast them, make Gobi Manchurian, or Aloo Gobi, or throw them in soups and salads, even make a cheesy casserole.

With Purple cauliflower, it seems a shame to cook it down and lose some of its nutrients and color in the mix. So, salads seem like a wonderful way to present them. And, this time, rather than toss them in with the usual Romaine lettuce and other salad fixings, I wanted to let the purple cauliflower be the primary ingredient with just a simple balance of flavors and a simple vinaigrette to enjoy it fresh.

Plus, I had just enough pickled asparagus and pickled baby scallop squash waiting to be used up.

The sweet, crisp pear counters the vinegar-soaked asparagus and scallop squash, while the fresh mild purple cauliflower provides texture and balance, with a light vinaigrette of olive oil and lemon juice.

Ingredients
2-3 cups purple cauliflower florets
½ cup chopped pickled scallop squash
4-6 pickled asparagus spears, cut into bite-sized pieces
1 medium pear, sliced
optional: Spring onions, freshly grated Parmesan cheese, dried cranberries, walnuts

Vinaigrette:
4 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil
1 Tbsp fresh lemon juice
1 tsp freshly ground black pepper
1 clove of garlic, crushed finely
salt to taste

Preparation
Simply toss the salad ingredients together, drizzle as much vinaigrette as needed, top with cranberries and walnuts, serve fresh.