Hey, I live in the frozen North. We eat lots of cabbage up here. You could even call it a way of life.

I like cabbage; in some form or other, I eat it almost every day. Like most vegetables, it can be good—even quite good—if you know how to prepare it properly.

But if you'd told me that cabbage could be delicious, one of the best things that you've ever eaten, well...quite frankly, I'm not sure that I would have believed you.

O ye doubters and cabbage-deniers: prepare ye to believe.

Roasted Cabbage Wedges

1 head white cabbage

extra-virgin olive oil

good salt

freshly-grown black pepper (optional)

Preheat oven to 425° F.

Halve cabbage. (Don't core it.) With the cut side down, slice each half into eight to ten wedges.

Cover two cookie sheets with baking parchment. Arrange cabbage wedges on parchment. Drizzle generously with olive oil; sprinkle generously with good salt, preferably something with large crystals.

Bake for about 20 minutes. Remove from oven, and gently flip wedges. (The outer leaves will be beginning to brown at this point. Don't worry: that's all part of the deliciousness.) Oil, salt, and (if desired) pepper the wedges, and return to oven.

Bake for another 20 minutes or so. Now check for doneness. The wedges will be done when they're fork-tender in the center.

Serve immediately. (A little squeeze of fresh lemon will do no harm whatsoever.) Then prepare to swoon.

For

Mike Howard

(1948-2015),

who always hated seeing

recipes in pagan periodicals.

"Ain't nothin' more pagan than good food."