Cabbage and spice and all things nice

Cauliflower and cabbage are perhaps not the most glamorous of vegetables. Next to the shiny aubergines, colourful peppers, glossy courgettes - all those vegetables that help us to think of sunshine and chic Mediterranean food - they can appear dowdy, old-fashioned even. Cauliflower sales fell 35% between 2000 and 2010, and while I haven't seen more recent figures, I somehow doubt there's been a huge resurgence.

But I have a soft spot for the humble and the home-grown, and if you want British veg at this time of year, then there isn't much in the way of glamour to be had. So let's add excitement and exoticism with spices.