My mom gave me a beautiful and strange Romanesca cauliflower this weekend and I was excited to try it. I’ve never had one before, so I looked up some recipes online, but everyone said to prepare it just like a regular cauliflower.

I wanted to leave it whole since it’s so gorgeous—so I steamed it and then baked it with a butter, bread crumb, cheese and herb topping. It was hard to get the topping to stick and it ended up obscuring the amazing spires, but it was delicious! I expected it to taste like a regular cauliflower, but I found it had a much more subtle and interesting taste.

I also made Braised Halibut with Tagliarini, which wasn’t very exciting. It smelled great, but even with all the garlic and anchovies it still managed to taste plain. But I liked the idea of pairing fish and pasta together, so I’ll keep looking for a better recipe.