cauliflower

Remember that yummy cilantro lime dressing I shared last week? Well, here’s another use for it!

This combination of spicy cauliflower and chickpeas with crunchy bell peppers, red onions, and jalapeños is a fabulously colorful and delicious meal that’s perfect for a meatless dinner night! This recipe (like all of my favorites) is adaptable to suit your preferences and tastes – please take it and make it your own!

The original idea for this dish stemmed from a delicious veggie taco recipe over on Two Peas and Their Pod – you may have seen their photos floating around Pinterest. Just look at those pictures and tell me you don’t want to try those tacos! I made them for Tim and my brother – and although they both enjoyed them, I distinctly remember my brother telling me that meat was a necessary ingredient in tacos. Guess you can’t please everyone! Anyway, I loved the veggie tacos so much that I decided to use the idea of roasting the veggies but exchange tortillas for quinoa instead. The addition of the cilantro lime dressing cools this dish down a bit and adds some more fun color.

Enjoy!!

Heavily adapted from Two Peas and Their Pod

Spicy Cauliflower Chickpea Quinoa Bowl

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Prep Time 15

Cook Time 45

Total Time 1

Servings: 4

Ingredients Method

Ingredients

1 c uncooked quinoa
1 head cauliflower rinsed, chopped into medium sized pieces, and patted dry
1 15 oz can chickpeas drained, rinsed, and patted dry
2 tsp chili powder
1 tsp cumin
1/4 tsp onion powder
1 tsp kosher salt
Juice of 1 lime
1 Tbs olive oil
1 Tbs water
Bell pepper red onion, jalapeño (I used the kind from a jar for the vinegary taste), cilantro, etc to taste. I like to add the colorful fresh vegetables to give this dish some crunch and to make it pretty! Add as many as you like or have on hand!
Salt and pepper to taste
Cilantro lime dressing find that recipe here!

Method

Heat oven to 400 degrees F
Place cauliflower and chickpeas in a large bowl.
Combine chili powder, cumin, garlic powder, onion powder, kosher salt, juice of one lime, olive oil, and water. Pour over cauliflower and chickpeas and stir gently to combine.
Place veggies on a rimmed baking sheet and roast at 400 for 30-45 minutes, flipping every 15 minutes.
While roasting veggies, cook quinoa according to package directions, and then set aside.
Combine roasted vegetables with quinoa in a large bowl. Add as many colorful vegetables as you like and stir to combine. Salt and pepper to taste. Serve with cilantro lime dressing drizzled over the top.

A few weeks ago we were making dinner with our friends Brandon and Christy, and we decided to tackle a recipe we came across on the internet for roasted cauliflower. It called for some specialty type of Mexican chile pepper, and since we didn’t have any on-hand, Christy and I figured we could substitute red pepper flakes and it would probably be fine. We even lessened the amount the recipe called for, because we knew that red pepper flakes are spicy! Knowing something is spicy and knowing how much of it to use are two different things apparently. We took the cauliflower out of the oven and although it was delicious, it nearly lit our faces on fire. Good thing we like spicy food!

This particular recipe for spicy roasted cauliflower is inspired by that dinner with Brandon and Christy, and I promise it won’t set your mouth on fire! If you don’t like spicy food, eliminate the red pepper flakes and cayenne altogether! And feel free to adjust the spices to your liking – I’d love to know if you try something new that you really enjoy!

Asharae Kroll

Spicy Roasted Cauliflower

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Prep Time 5

Cook Time 20

Total Time 25

Servings: 4

Ingredients Method

Ingredients

1 head of cauliflower
Olive oil
1/4 tsp cumin
1/4 tsp garlic powder
1/4 tsp red chili flakes more or less depending on preference
1/8 tsp chili powder
pinch of cayenne pepper
Salt and pepper to taste
Lime juice and cilantro

Method

Preheat oven to 425F
Rinse cauliflower and chop into medium size pieces. Pat dry with a paper towel.
Place cauliflower on a rimmed baking sheet.
Drizzle lightly with olive oil and toss.
Combine spices in a small bowl and sprinkle over cauliflower.
Sprinkle lightly with salt and pepper and toss.
Roast for approximately 20 minutes, turning the cauliflower half way through. Keep a close eye on it after flipping to make sure it doesn't burn.
Adjust salt and pepper to taste, squeeze fresh lime juice over the top, and sprinkle with fresh chopped cilantro.