Rigatoni and Cauliflower al Forno Recipe (2024)

My family absolutely loves this dish. I usually reduce the pasta to half the amount required (for 4) and put in more cauliflower. Caramelizing the cauliflower, though takes a lot longer than described and in my opinion requires more oil than called for in the recipe. Have tried the 'oven model,' but think the flavor is better when using the skillet.

I've been making pasta with pan roasted cauliflower for many years. I would recommend that those that found it to be dry and without flavour try it without baking. It really isn't meant to be a baked pasta. The person who recommended saving the pata water is spot on and it should be used at the end to marry the flavours. Saute the pasta (penne is also good) with the water and cauliflower mixture. You can add some percorino and more capers if it is too bland for your tastes.

I combined all ingredients except the cheese and pasta, tossed and spread on cookie sheet then roasted it in the oven, cooked the pasta, took it out of the water, added the cheese, tossed with roasted cauliflower and served.

"Here's the recipe." That was my response to my husband's question, "What would you like me to make for dinner on your birthday, Sweetie." Pretty foolproof to make. Pretty fantabulous flavors to eat. We didn't find it dry as others suggest but my Italian hubby is Italian and it is the mode NOT to heavily sauce pastas in his heritage. Paired with a nice glass of Arneis, I was a happy woman...in spite of having another year on my age.

I used only a half pound of pasta with a whole cauliflower; roasted the cauliflower with the garlic and olive oil in the oven at 400F for 20-30 minutes instead of on the stovetop; added up to 1/2 cup of pasta water in the final mix as some suggested. Had no breadcrumbs so made homemade croutons, used about a cup of those. To my taste this needed more capers and more lemon, adding a squeeze of lemon when serving boosted the flavor nicely. Overall we enjoyed this and I'll make it again.

I made this a few weeks ago and though the flavors were superb, there was too much pasta and it was too dry. I used half the pasta and added 1 cup of fresh ricotta, which added a marvelous creaminess that went super well with all of the interesting flavors. Would probably add some black pepper next time as well.

Several people suggested using less pasta. That is an understatement. In fact, I wonder if Tanis made an error in recommending 1# of pasta. That is far too much for 6 people, and far too much for the rest of the ingredients. I hope he will change the instructions to recommend (at most) 8 oz. of pasta. Fortunately it was obvious to me when when I combined the ingredients that I should use 1/2 the pasta called for.

Sister-in-law Hannah has made this delicious dish several times. I used her short cut of roasting the cauliflower in the oven with evoo, salt and pepper for 30 minutes at 400 degrees then proceeding as directed. Fabulous!

I have made this several times and we love it. I actually like the "dry" aspect--you get crispy pasta edges and bread crumbs. Yum! I do agree that 1 pound of pasta is too much, though.

Save about 1/2 cup pasta water to mix in before baking so the dish is less dry. Use 3/4 pound pasta, not a full pound.
Do not rinse the pasta; cook it so it is ready when the cauliflower mixture is ready and you can add pasta to bowl.
Adding a little white wine sounds good.

This is not a creamy macaroni and cheese type pasta.
I love the crispy, drier texture.
The capers and fontina and bread crumbs make this dish.
There are a myriad of Mac and cheese recipes out there. This is different and wonderful.

I added some pasta water and it was creamy and delicious. Not dry at all.

I used romanesco instead of cauliflower because that's what I had. I also caramelized some onions, sauteed some swiss chard with the garlic, chili flakes, onions, and juice from half a lemon. Then mixed everything together. Delicious!

No need to rinse the pasta.

I just made this for a second time, and I like it. But saying it takes an hour is pretty ridiculous. It takes that long to prepare and fried cauliflower, not to mention all the rest of it.

Delicious with cauliflower florets and baby corn tossed in olive oil and roasted in the oven for 20 minutes beforehand. Fresh peas added to the end of the pasta too

This was delicious. It is a beautiful upscale version of what I grew up eating, which is referred to as peasant food. Pasta with garlic, olive oil and freshly grated pecorino Romano was a weekly staple growing up with Sicilian immigrant parents. The Sicilian word for cauliflower is broccolo. It’s not dry, so many flavors! I used broccoli and cauliflower mixed together and parsley in my version. Can’t wait to share it with my 94 year old mom!

If your Sage plant is buried in the snow, as is mine, try one-third as much rosemary.

Chicken soup of pasta!!!

Read a lot of the comments before cooking. I’m usually a “make it per recipe first” but we were hungry and short on time. So — boiled cauliflower instead. In a bowl with some olive oil, combined all the ingredients except the cheese (plus anchovies because anchovies). When the cauliflower was done, added it to the bowl and tossed. Then, mixed cauliflower with pasta and mozzarella in the baking dish and topped as per the recipe. Baked 400 for 25 min - not dry at all but crispy on top. Amazing!

Definitely took longer than 1 hour for me. I appreciated the gentle flavors, but would consider sneaking in some diced pancetta or bacon next time for good luck.

I made this tonight. Had to make some subs based on what we had, but kept to the recipe for the most part. Excellent results. It's a savory dish that left us with a wonderful after taste. We used a half pound of pasta which seemed about right. Looking forward to more.

Do not eat this if you are trying to lose weight. Too delicious!I used 10 oz of pasta, 2 tbsp capers, 1/2 c of pasta water, per other commenters. Everything else as written. The rare recipe that will please sophisticated adults as well as picky children.

I've made this many times and plan to tonight - I will try roasting the cauliflower this time in the oven. My secret with this recipe is to add cremini mushrooms - saute them up with some EVOO and stir them in with the cauliflower - YUM!

The flavors are absolutely amazing, but I have to agree with many others that it needs more liquid. I added some Italian sausage thinking that would be enough lubrication, but I’d personally like more dairy. Maybe a bit of ricotta or cream next time as some have suggested. Def trying again.

I’d recommend doubling the capers (I don’t chop them), skipping or halving the breadcrumbs, cutting the pasta used from 1 lb. to a half pound. I also like to add a half cup of water to the cauliflower and steam them for a few minutes to get them a little softer.

This was the biggest NYT fail I've ever had. Dry and lacking flavor. As other readers noted, way too much pasta but I'm not sure even that would solve the dry issue. Capers etc could easily be doubled even tripled. The sage was the only flavor that came through. What a dud.

We did not find it dry, but I added a chopped shalot and a large handful of mushrooms that I then thinly sliced. Also, at the carmelization point, I added a tablespoon of Muscat. This went very well with a dry Sicilian wine called "Munjebel".

Followed Nancy's advice and roasted in a sheet pan. I chose to veganize it with Violife vegan mozzarella and Parmesan. Added some pasta water give that so many criticized dryness. Turned out pretty good.