Pasta and tacos: Miguel Barclay’s £1 cauliflower recipes

Soft and creamy when boiled and blended, meaty when charred and crumbled, thrifty cauliflower comes out tops for pushing meat off the menu

When creating dishes for £1, I have to be super-aware of just how much I’m getting for my money, and whether an ingredient is main dish-worthy or if it will only ever be a side dish. Cauliflower always comes out on top, and is increasingly becoming one of my go-to ingredients. I love the way it can caramelise to give you those meaty notes, and is one reason the humble cauliflower has the power to push meat from my menu.

Prep 10 minCook 20 minServes 1

¼ cauliflower, cut into floretsOlive oil 1 tsp ground cumin1 tsp smoked paprikaSalt and pepper½ red onion, thinly slicedSplash of red-wine vinegar 40g plain flour 1 small handful chopped coriander, to serveFeta, crumbled, to serve

Coat the cauliflower in the olive oil, cumin and paprika, season, then roast in a 180C (160C fan)/350F/gas 4 oven for about 20 minutes, until nicely coloured.

Meanwhile, put the onion in a bowl with a splash of red-wine vinegar and let it sit for at least 10 minutes.

To make the tacos, put the flour and 25ml water in a bowl with a pinch of salt, and mix to make a dough. Knead on a work surface until the dough is smooth, then separate into three and roll into balls. Roll out each ball into a roughly 10cm circle, then toast in a dry frying pan on a medium heat for a couple of minutes on each side.

Stir the coriander into the red onion pickle, then assemble your tacos: put a tablespoon of the onion salad on each tortilla, top with some cauliflower and a little crumbled feta, and serve.

Cauliflower is great when it's soft and creamy, but also when it's charred and the flavour is intensified through caramelisation. So here we’re doing both.Prep 5 minCook 20 minServes 1

½ cauliflower About 150ml milk Salt and pepper About 50g grated parmesan Olive oil125g tagliatelle

Chop the cauliflower into chunks, and keep some nice-looking florets to one side for the topping. Boil the chunks of cauliflower, including the stalk, in salted water for about 10 minutes, until soft, then blend in a food processor with the milk, a generous seasoning of salt and pepper, and the parmesan.

Meanwhile, season the reserved florets and fry on a high heat in a glug of oil for about seven minutes, until golden brown all over.

Cook the pasta in salted boiling water according to the packet instructions, then drain. Mix the pasta with the cauliflower sauce, adding a splash of the cooking water to loosen, if need be, top with the fried florets and serve garnished with a generous glug of olive oil and some salt and pepper.

Recipes adapted from Vegan One Pound Meals and Meat-Free One Pound Meals, by Miguel Barclay, both published by Headline at £16.99. To order a copy of either for £14.78, go to guardianbookshop.com