Cauliflower groups. In the 1st century AD, Pliny included what he called "cyma" among his descriptions of cultivated plants in "Natural History": ""Ex omnibus brassicae generibus suavissima est cyma,"" ("Of all the varieties of cabbage the most pleasant-tasted is "cyma""). Pliny's descriptions likely refer to the flowering heads of an earlier cultivated variety of "Brassica oleracea", but comes close to describing modern cauliflower. It is found in the writings of the Arab botanists Ibn al-'Awwam and Ibn al-Baitar, in the 12th and 13th centuries when its origins were said to be Cyprus. François Pierre La Varenne employed "chouxfleurs" in "Le cuisinier
Cauliflower cheese Cauliflower cheese Cauliflower cheese is a traditional British dish. It can be eaten as a main course, for lunch or dinner, or as a side dish. Cauliflower cheese consists of pieces of cauliflower lightly boiled and covered with a milk-based cheese sauce, for which a mature cheese (such as cheddar) tends to be preferred. A more elaborate white sauce or cheddar cheese sauce flavoured with English mustard and nutmeg may also be used. The dish is topped with grated cheese (sometimes mixed with bread crumbs) and baked in the oven to finish it. Cauliflower is thought to originate from Kythrea