Fibonacci Broccoli

I drove to the Santa Rosa farmers’ market because my local one doesn’t open for another month.  Our newly formed group, Savor, meets this Wednesday and I have to come up with a potluck dish (featuring kale, of course!) so I did my shopping today.

I stopped at Oh, Tommy Boy for kale, and got two bunches.  They also had this strange broccoli/cauliflower-looking vegetable front and center.  The shape is clearly in the broccoli range, but the color is bright yellow-green, almost the shape  shade of acacia blossoms.  The florets do not form in rounded heads like clouds or the top of trees, but in spirals ending in a point.  Depending on your mood, it could look like a tiny grove of Christmas trees, a fractal-painting, or some steampunk variation on a mace (the weapon, not the spice).

It’s broccoli romanesco—or cauliflower romanesco, depending on where you’re from; also called coral broccoli and roman cabbage.  You can Google “Fibonacci Broccoli” and you will find it.  Seriously. The florets really do grow in a spiral pattern. Here is a website with fun things to do with the Fibonacci sequence, broccoli and other vegetables.  Don’t say you never learned anything on my blog.

I asked how to cook it and both the vendor and the lady next to me agreed that while it’s great raw, it’s also delectable roasted.  Break up the florets, coat them lightly in olive oil and spread them on a baking sheet; roast for about ten minutes at 425 degrees (or even 475, the farmer suggested).  The lady next to me murmured, “And I always add garlic and Parmesan cheese,” so that’s what I’m going to try tonight.

I broke off a floret and ate it in the car, just out of curiosity.  It’s a bit milder than broccoli; nutlike and sweet and I’m interested to see how it tastes roasted.