Cauliflower is one of my favourite veggies on earth... when prepared properly. Roasting it until it gets crispy is one of my favourite ways to consume it, and I can't get over the brilliant spice combination here—cumin and lemon are particularly incredible together.
1headorganic medium cauliflower, cut evenly into small florets
2-3organic shallots, finely sliced
1tbsp+ 2 tsp extra virgin organic olive oil
2tspfreshly squeezed organic lemon juice
2tsporganic ground cumin
1/2tsporganic ground coriander
1/2tsporganic chili powder
1/2tsporganic caraway seeds
sea salt and organic black pepper to taste
1/3 cupsprouted organic French lentils
2cupsorganic arugula
1/3cuporganic pomegranate seedsoptional
organic lemon slices and/or organic flat leaf parsley to garnish
Lemon tahini dressing ingredients
1cloveorganic garlic, grated with a microplane
1/3cuporganic tahini
2tbspfiltered water
2tbspfreshly squeezed organic lemon juice
2tsporganic apple cider vinegarwith the 'mother'
1tsporganic maple syrup
sea salt and organic black pepper to taste
Instructions
Preheat the oven to 400 F (200 C). Line a baking sheet with unbleached, biodegradable parchment paper or prepare a carbon steel baking tray.
Make the dukkah. In a dry skillet, toast the walnuts, almonds and sunflower seeds on medium high, stirring regularly until they turn fragrant and slightly golden brown, about 5 minutes. Transfer to a small bowl. Place the sesame seeds in the same skillet and return to heat on medium until they start to pop and turn golden brown in colour. Quickly transfer them to the small bowl with the toasted nuts. In a food processor, combine the toasted nuts, seeds, fennel, cumin, coriander, cayenne and sea salt, and reduce to a crumble that is dense in texture, but not too fine. Remove and set aside in a storage jar.
Make the salad. Place the cauliflower florets and shallots combined on the baking sheet. Drizzle with the olive oil and lemon juice, and season with the cumin, coriander, chili, caraway, salt, and pepper. Toss them right on the baking sheet to coat them with the spices.
Slide the baking sheet in the oven, and roast for 20 to 25 minutes or until cauliflower is quite browned to your preference.
While the vegetables are roasting, make the lentils. Bring a medium saucepan of filtered water to a boil. Drop in the lentils with a big pinch of salt. Bring it down to a simmer for about 20 minutes or until lentils are tender. (Skip this step if you've sprouted your lentils).
Meanwhile, make the tahini. In a small bowl, combine the garlic, tahini, filtered water, lemon juice, apple cider vinegar, maple syrup, salt and pepper. Whisk the mixture with a fork until it has a smooth, creamy texture. Set aside.
Once the vegetables are done, remove the baking sheet from the oven and transfer the roasted vegetables to a serving bowl. Remove the lentils from heat and drain (if you boiled them), and transfer the lentils to the same baking sheet. Slide the baking sheet with the lentils back into the oven to roast for a brief 8 minutes at 400 F (200 C). Remove from the oven, and using a stainless steel or silicone spatula to lift them up from the sheet, sprinkle the lentils on top of the cauliflower and toss the mixture evenly with the arugula and pomegranate seeds.
Serve the roasted cauliflower toss hot with the tahini drizzled over top, a big pinch of toasted dukkah sprinkle, and some fresh lemon wedges on the side, if you like.
Notes
There will be a lot of dukkah left over for all of your sprinkling needs. Store it in a tight lid jar for 2 weeks as a topping for salads, soups, pasture raised meats, roasted vegetables, or any other dish.
When making the tahini, you can potentially make the garlic's nutritional value and healthful, anti-cancer compounds more bioavailable by grating it at the very beginning to allow the garlic to be exposed to the air for about 6-10 minutes (or more). (source)
Nutrients in plants are not always easily digested, even if 100% organic/biodynamically grown. Sprouting the lentils to reduce their antinutrients is imperative to avoid ending up with a nutrient net negative and digestive issues (plus it softens them up)! This is one of the many ancestral methods of preparation you can use to maximize the nutritional profile and benefits while minimizing the harm of all of the delicious produce you consume. One example is in Chinese medicine where sprouted foods were used for over 5,000 years to cure ailments. If you do sprout your lentils for this recipe, boiling them is entirely optional (I do it anyway)—you can just pop them right into the oven directly after transferring them from their sprouting vessel.