Salads aren’t just for the warm weather months, but when I get my vegetable cravings in the winter I change up my salads with heartier vegetables and ingredients that have warm, smoky flavors, like roasted vegetables and smoked paprika. This Roasted Cauliflower Salad is actually a play on one of my other favorite salads, Mediterranean Farro Salad. I used the same Lemon Tahini Dressing (because it’s so good that I want to pour it on everything) and spiced chickpeas because I thought they would provide just the right punch to complement the mellow roasted cauliflower. The combination of roasted cauliflower, sweet red onions, spiced chickpeas, and tangy lemon tahini dressing might be my favorite yet!
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Other Salad Greens Options:
Parsley is a great green to use for salads because it’s cheap and the presence is subtle enough to not over power the cauliflower and chickpeas. Baby spinach would also work, as would finely chopped kale, but both will likely be a bit more expensive.
What is Tahini?
Tahini is the star ingredient for the delicious lemon tahini dressing for this salad. If you’ve never heard of tahini, it’s just like peanut butter, but made with sesame seeds instead of peanuts. It has a creamy yet slightly sharp flavor that is totally unique. It’s usually about twice the price of peanut butter, but it’s a valuable ingredient and stays good in the fridge for just about forever (just like peanut butter). You can use it to make gobs of delicious homemade hummus, as well as this amazing lemon tahini dressing. I promise you’ll want more of this dressing.
What to Serve with Roasted Cauliflower Salad
This Roasted Cauliflower Salad is really filling, so it can definitely stand on its own as a vegetarian main dish, but if you want to make something to go on the side, it also goes great with Focaccia Rolls, Herb Roasted Chicken Breast, Homemade Naan, Greek Turkey Burgers, or Creamy Mushroom Soup.
Roasted Cauliflower Salad with Lemon Tahini Dressing
Servings 4Ingredients
- 1 head cauliflower ($2.99)
- 1/2 red onion ($0.55)
- 2 Tbsp olive oil ($0.32)
- Salt and Pepper to taste ($0.05)
- 1/2 bunch parsley ($0.45)
LEMON TAHINI DRESSING
- 1/3 cup tahini ($1.13)
- 1/3 cup water ($0.00)
- 1/4 cup lemon juice ($0.18)
- 2 cloves garlic, minced ($0.16)
- 1/2 tsp cumin ($0.05)
- 1/4 tsp cayenne ($0.03)
- 1/4 tsp salt ($0.02)
SPICED CHICKPEAS
- 1 15oz. can chickpeas ($0.79)
- 1 Tbsp olive oil ($0.16)
- 1/2 tsp smoked paprika ($0.05)
- 1/4 tsp garlic powder ($0.03)
- 1/8 tsp cayenne ($0.02)
- Salt and Pepper to taste ($0.05)
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 400ºF. Chop the cauliflower into small florets and place them on a large baking sheet. Slice the red onion into 1/4-inch strips and place them on the baking sheet. Drizzle the cauliflower and onions with olive oil and season with a pinch or two of salt and pepper. Toss the cauliflower and onions until coated in oil, salt, and pepper.
- Roast the cauliflower and onions in the preheated oven for 20 minutes, then stir, return them to the oven, and roast for an additional 10-15 minutes, or until the cauliflower is tender and browned on the edges. Let the cauliflower cool slightly.
- While the cauliflower and onions are roasting, make the lemon tahini dressing. Add the tahini, water, lemon juice, garlic, cumin, cayenne, and salt to a blender. Blend until smooth, then refrigerate until ready to serve.
- Drain and rinse the can of chickpeas. Add them to a skillet along with the olive oil, smoked paprika, cayenne, and a pinch of salt and pepper. Stir and cook the chickpeas over medium heat for about five minutes, or until they sizzle and become slightly crispy. Remove the chickpeas from the heat.
- Pull the parsley leaves from their stems and roughly chop the leaves into small pieces (about 1.5 cups loosely packed, once chopped).
- To build the salad, combine the roasted cauliflower and onions in a bowl with the spiced chickpeas and chopped parsley. Drizzle the lemon tahini dressing over top, and toss to combine. Serve warm or cold.
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Nutrition
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Try this lemon tahini dressing drizzled over all your favorite roasted vegetables!
How to Make Roasted Cauliflower Salad – Step by Step Photos
Begin by preheating the oven to 400ºF. Chop one head of cauliflower into florets. Slice 1/2 of a red onion into 1/4-inch strips. Place the cauliflower and onions on a large baking sheet. Drizzle the vegetables with 2 Tbsp olive oil and a couple pinches of salt and pepper. Toss the vegetables until they are well coated in oil, salt, and pepper.
Roast the cauliflower and onion for 20 minutes, stir, then return them to the oven and roast for another 10-15 minutes, or until the cauliflower is tender and the edges browned. (the sides touching the baking sheet brown fastest, so you’ll see more browning once you give it a final stir).
While the vegetables are roasting, prepare the lemon tahini dressing. Place 1/3 cup tahini, 1/3 cup water, 1/4 cup lemon juice, 2 cloves minced garlic, 1/2 tsp cumin, 1/4 tsp cayenne, and 1/4 tsp salt in a blender. Blend until the dressing is smooth. Refrigerate the dressing until you’re ready to serve the salad.
To prepare the spiced chickpeas, drain and rinse one 15oz. can of chickpeas. Add the drained chickpeas to a skillet along with 1 Tbsp olive oil, 1/2 tsp smoked paprika, 1/4 tsp garlic powder, 1/8 tsp cayenne, and a pinch of salt and pepper. Stir and cook the chickpeas for about 5 minutes over medium heat or until they begin to sizzle and become slightly crispy on the outside. Remove them from the heat. (I like to do this in a non-stick skillet.)
Pull the leaves from about 1/2 bunch of parsley and chop them into small pieces (about 1.5 cups loosely packed once chopped). To build the salad, combine the roasted cauliflower and onions with the spiced chickpeas and chopped parsley…
Drizzle the lemon tahini dressing over top…
Stir to combine, and enjoy! You can enjoy this Roasted Cauliflower Salad slightly warm from the oven, or chilled after storing in the refrigerator.
Made it. Loved it. I jacked up the dressing with a tablespoon of peanut butter and a pinch of curry. Awesome.
Can this dish be frozen after the ingredients have been cooked and combined?
I don’t think this one will work well frozen, unfortunately.
This was fantastic! The dressing alone is worth the price of admission. I made this almost to the recipe. I forgot to get a red onion, so used the yellow one I had. After roasting with the cauliflower, it was still very tasty. Also added some crumbled feta at the end – yum. Next time I try, I might add toasted pine nuts. Very good and very filling. Definitely adding to the rotation. :)
I’m always looking for a recipe that can accommodate others dietary restrictions but are still enjoyable for everyone. This is exactly that, I love the play on textures between the cauliflower and chickpeas. The parsley gives it a fresh and bright punch. The dressing is tangy but creamy. I make it exactly as the recipe calls, which is a rarity. This is a keeper!
This looks amazing! Is there a dressing alternative you have tried with this or would suggest for someone who is allergic to tree nuts and cannot have tahini?
I think a creamy caesar would also be pretty good, or even some sort of green goddess dressing? I don’t have recipes for these, but those are flavor combos that might be good.
This recipe was awesome… The cauliflower gives the salad a “meaty” texture while the tahini is super savory and nutty. I added a little arugula for a spicy bite (and to stretch it for leftovers through the week). I would definitely recommend!
Damn! Just made this recipe and it is delish! Highly recommended, thanks again for a great result :)
I’ve never had a fail on any of the recipes I have tried on here (Miracle Mac & Cheese, Black Bean Quesadillas, Thai Peanut Chicken). Another one I can add to my regular rotation.
Eating this as I type!
Fantastic recipe! I doubled (okay, maybe tripled) the spices called for. I haven’t been this satisfied with a salad in a while.
I might add bacon next time just for a little extra treat but this salad is perfect on its own!
Had this for dinner tonight and loved it. I was totally prepared to be all, “ho hum, vegetables,” but it was really good, especially with the dressing!
This is one of the best vegetable-based dishes I’ve ever made. It was absolutely delicious. My husband (who dislikes cauliflower) even said he really liked it! Thank you for sharing it!
People think I’m crazy when I say salads are my favorite foods… until I show them recipes like this one!! :D
This was so delicious! Only difference was tahini had red chili’s in it so I omitted cayenne from. Dressing.
Delicious ! Served it in a warm pita with a bit of chopped tomato
This recipe is fantastic, my partner and I loved it. This will go on my regular meal to cook file.
Yum yum in my big fat tum
I just made this and it was amazing! I added in some sautéed kale and it was perfect. I may add some quinoa next time, but the recipe is delicious!