It’s a very good thing to have if you want to make a pumpkin or butternut squash pie from scratch.
Back when I was little, my mother showed me how you bake the halved squash til it is sorta squooshy, scoop it out of the shell, and rice it, to get the texture all smooth before you squeeze it in cheesecloth to get the moisture out. (this fluid is delicious with a little sugar, over ice. Got the idea from Harry Potter novels. Yup.)
The resulting dryish paste can then be mixed with half and half, eggs, and assorted spices to make the killer autumn feast-type pie.
It’s also good for farmer’s cheese when making these cookies. Pressing the cheese through a sieve works great, but is exhausting and time consuming…a ricer works better. And Lillith Fair and I each made a batch of dough…I sieved, she didn’t, and it made a huge difference!
No, seriously. Rice your cauliflower, mix in some milk and spices, and it’s just like mashed taters. An excellent side dish for increasing your healthy veggie intake.
Riced cauliflower is very nice. I wouldn’t characterize it as “just like mashed taters,” though. It really isn’t going to fool anyone. But it’s a great light, low-cal alternative to mashed potatoes.
Since I couldn’t find the ricer tonight (it’s gotta be around here somewhere), I will keep it in mind for tomorrow…ooh! I think we have some white sprinkles left over from Easter cookies, too! “Cheese”!
