Sam Sifton's Roasted Cauliflower with Anchovy Bread Crumbs

While mashed potatoes and green beans are no-brainers come Thanksgiving, that additional side dish or two can be a bit of a toss-up. That's where Sam Sifton's Roasted Cauliflower with Anchovy Bread Crumbs from Thanksgiving: How to Cook it Well comes in—pop it into the oven while your turkey rests. Roasted cauliflower is awesome on its own, at once creamy and caramelized, but the addition of crunchy anchovy bread crumbs takes the dish into Thanksgiving territory.

It doesn't taste of anchovies; instead the cauliflower tastes like the best extra-salty and crisp version of itself.

Why I picked this recipe: Roasted cauliflower is, in my opinion, brassica at its best. Buttery anchovy bread crumbs just make it that much better.

What worked: Everything about this recipe is spot-on. The anchovy flavor falls into the background, lending salty-funky flavor to the caramelized cauliflower.

What didn't: Nada. Add this to your Thanksgiving line-up, stat.

Suggested tweaks: You could add an extra herb or two here if you wanted (rosemary, thyme, or parsley would work well), and could interchange (or add) other brassica like broccoli or romanesco as well.

Reprinted with permission from Thanksgiving: How to Cook it Well by Sam Sifton. Copyright 2012. Published by Random House. All rights reserved. Available wherever books are sold. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from the publisher.