Every Wednesday I meet with my group of mom friends. We rotate houses each week, so we each end up hosting once a month. Since we tend to meet in the the middle of the day (between naptimes!), we usually try to have some sort of lunch or snack on hand.
Two weeks ago, it was my turn to host. Casey was in Hong Kong, I was getting ready to go to Georgia, and time just simply got away from me. I ended up running to the store for groceries that morning, and grabbed a few prepared salads from the PCC deli counter while I was out.
One of the things I picked up was a roasted cauliflower salad. While the babies climbed and crawled over one another, the moms chatted and ate. We all agreed, the salad was amazing.
So it only made sense that I try to make it again myself. I was happy to find that my recreation was just as good, if not better. It was delicious fresh, and even better the next day.
Roasted Cauliflower Tahini Salad
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 30 minutes
Ingredients (4 servings)
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2 small (or 1 large) heads cauliflower
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3 medium carrots
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1 large red onion
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1/4 cup roasted sunflower seeds
For the Dressing
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2 tablespoons tahini
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2 tablespoons water
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1 tablespoon olive oil
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1 tablespoon lemon juice
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salt and pepper (to taste)
Instructions
Start by preheating the oven to 375 degrees. Chop cauliflower into bite sized florets. Toss with olive oil and a bit of salt, and roast on a sheet pan for ~30 minutes, stirring once halfway through the cook time.
While the cauliflower cooks, thinly slice your red onion. Add to a non-stick pan with a bit of olive oil, and cook over medium heat until really soft. Red onions are one of those ingredients that people tend to run from, and I personally despise them raw. But cooked is a whole other story! Cooking really brings out the sweetness, and can elevate a dish like this to a new level.
One the onions are cooked, add them to a mixing bowl. Use a grater to grate three medium carrots and add to the bowl as well. Top with roasted sunflower seeds.
In a small separate dish, whisk together the dressing ingredients. Once the cauliflower is cooked, add to the mixing bowl and toss everything in the dressing. Season to taste with any additional salt if needed. Serve and enjoy!
We ate ours with a big pile of cheesy kale chips and some salt and pepper tofu to round out the plate. The cauliflower was so good that I went back for seconds.
It’s funny how something as simple as roasting can really transform a vegetable. Paired with a bright tahini dressing and sweet red onion and carrot, this cauliflower is seriously addictive.
I’ve already added more cauliflower to our CSA box for this week just so I can make this again! I hope you like it as much as we do. Enjoy!
79 Comments so far
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Mm, I love these kinds of roasted salads. They usually last for a few days in the fridge and make great leftovers, too! I often make roasted veggies to serve warm for dinner one night, then transform the leftovers into something like this.
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Looks and sounds delicious! I have been going a little crazy with tahini dressing lately so this is perfect for me.
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your mom’s group sounds like such a great time!
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I can’t wait to try this, Emily. We’ve been roasting our CSA veggies almost every night — so I’m obsessed with roasting right now. I haven’t had cauliflower in a while . . . so, definitely picking some up this weekend. That’s so cool that you get together weekly with mom-friends. I think I might need to organize something like that. We’re all so scattered where I live. Sigh :)
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Sounds amazing! And I’ve been wondering what to do with the rest of that tahini in my fridge. Thanks!
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This looks amazing! I can’t wait to try it :)
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Looks great! Would leftovers stay well in the fridge for a few days??
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Emily Malone Reply:
July 9th, 2012 at 12:40 pm
Yes, definitely. Although I’d bet they don’t last very long. :)
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Amanda Reply:
July 23rd, 2012 at 8:59 am
And taste good served cold?
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Amanda Reply:
July 23rd, 2012 at 9:17 am
never mind! i just saw the answer elsewhere. thanks! i’m a big fan!
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Emily Malone Reply:
July 24th, 2012 at 3:22 pm
Hope you like it! :)
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That looks fabulous! Cauliflower always makes great veggie salads :)
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Yum! The cauliflower in my vegi garden are just about ready to pick. I cant wait to make this!
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What an amazing looking salad! I’m not sure why I don’t use more tahini in my salad dressings?!
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I love cauliflower but I’m ashamed to say that I kind of completely forgot about it! Steamed cauliflower was my favorite as a kid
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This looks absolutely incredible. I always want to find ways to eat cauliflower and this might be just the ticket. Thanks for recreating and sharing.
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I have tried several of your recipes and love all of them, especially mexican quinoa! This one is already pinned and I can’t wait to try it next week. I made cauliflower mashed potatoes and my husband didn’t even notice, so I’m sure I can get him to eat this as well :)
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Emily Malone Reply:
July 9th, 2012 at 12:39 pm
Thanks Jamie! So glad you’ve been enjoying the recipes.
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this sounds amazing, and i love the dressing – you could practically drink that! :)
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OMG this is delicious I live these simple meals you create, For those who want to incorporate cauliflower into there lives, I ate once at a Lebanese resturant they had this amazing dish it was roasted cauliflower with tahini dressing served next to chips and salad it was delicious!
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Nice dish, wow you hate raw red onions that’s a first would live to know what vegetables you don’t like? Interested?
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This looks amazing, love cauliflower!
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I love roasted cauliflower, so I’ll definitely have to try this one!
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Why not roast the red onion with the cauliflower? I do that often for a roasted & curried cauliflower recipe and it works great. French cut the onion and toss it with the oil and the cauliflower – it will caramelize perfectly. And it’ll save you one dirty pan!
Also, you probably know this trick, but you can make raw onions milder and sweeter just by soaking them for 10-15 min in a little water (or vinegar if you’re adding them to salad). Tames the bite that many people hate while keeping the raw texture.
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Emily Malone Reply:
July 9th, 2012 at 12:39 pm
That’s a good idea, Jess! I did the red onions in a pan because I wanted them julienned thinly instead of having big wedges. But if you don’t mind the onions and cauliflower the same size, one pan could definitely work.
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I always forget how much I love cauliflower, roasting it sounds so delicious!
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I have tried a raw version of this salad before and loved it. I can’t use the oven again until the Fall (gotta love Florida heat) but I will definitely try this then!
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Is this salad meant to be eaten warm? Is it good cold as well?
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Emily Malone Reply:
July 9th, 2012 at 12:37 pm
We ate it both warm and cold – great both ways! My sister liked it better cold.
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Printed the recipe going to make this!
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Looks great! I love the flavor of tahini, and so does the hubs.
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I tell you…anything with a tahini sauce…
:)
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Looks amazing!! Printed and going to make it tonight!
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This looks outstanding. I’ve already added cauliflower to my grocery list just so I can make this dish!
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I love the sound of this dressing! I have some tahini that needs to be used. This sounds like a great use!
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Looks delicious! I will definitely be trying this :)
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This sounds delicious, simple and perfect for summer. I know what I’m adding to my grocery list for this weekend! =)
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Yum! This looks great. We just grilled heads of cauliflower with s & p, olive oil & lemon and it was amazing.
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This looks so good! I will be making it soon! I wanted to tell you that I’ve made several of your recipes and they do not dissapoint! Recently – blackened tofu – amazing. Even my husband loved!
hippie bowl – delicious!
creamy pasta with tofu/sweet potato sauce – delish!
Can’t wait to try the strawberry and tofu salad.
Keep ‘em comin’! :)
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Emily Malone Reply:
July 9th, 2012 at 12:35 pm
I am so happy to hear you’ve been enjoying the recipes. Thanks so much for letting me know! :)
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Made this tonight! It turned out perfectly, thanks for a great new dish. I had to sub Trader Joe’s Tahini sauce and a yellow onion, but it was still really, really good. Again, thanks for posting it.
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Emily Malone Reply:
July 9th, 2012 at 12:32 pm
Glad to hear it, and thanks for letting me know!
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Emily, that salad from PCC is actually my favorite deli salad *ever*! Some locations don’t even make it all year round (it’s more common in the fall/winter), so every time I see it when I’m at one of their locations (they are one of my accounts for my job), I always buy at least one of the biggest containers of it. And then I eat the entire thing in one sitting ;) So excited to try this!
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Emily Malone Reply:
July 9th, 2012 at 12:31 pm
Ahh so awesome. You HAVE to make this then!! You will love it!
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What is the cheesy kale chip recipe that you use? Thanks!
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Emily Malone Reply:
July 9th, 2012 at 12:31 pm
I just toss kale leaves with olive oil, salt, and a generous amount of nutritional yeast and bake for 10 minutes at 375. So simple and delicious!
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Yum, cauliflower is $1 at the store right now, so I may have to try this :)
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Emily Malone Reply:
July 9th, 2012 at 12:30 pm
I am jealous!! Ours is still sort of pricey.
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I never eat cauliflower (nor am I a huge fan) but this looked so good I had to try it. I made it today and YUM!!!!!! Ate two big bowls and cant wait to eat the leftovers:)
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Emily Malone Reply:
July 9th, 2012 at 12:29 pm
Happy to hear it!
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I made this last night and it was delicious! My husband who is not a cauliflower fan LOVED it!!! I added a wee bit of chili powder to the recipe.
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Emily Malone Reply:
July 9th, 2012 at 12:29 pm
Thanks so much for coming back to let me know! Glad you guys liked it. :)
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I made this today with the cauliflower we got in our CSA box. It was delicious. Thanks Emily!
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Emily Malone Reply:
July 9th, 2012 at 12:29 pm
Thank you so much for letting me know!
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We made this (with the exemption of the carrots because we ran out and we’re going on vacation) and it is delicious! I’m always looking for new ways to make cauliflower as the hubs loves the stuff! Thanks!
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Emily Malone Reply:
July 9th, 2012 at 12:29 pm
So glad you liked it! Even better with the carrots. :)
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I tried this over the weekend and topped it with golden raisins (for a little extra sweetness) – mmm!
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Just had this for dinner– delish! Kind of want to try it with the golden raisins marilyn suggested. Thanks for the recipe!
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Emily Malone Reply:
July 10th, 2012 at 10:28 pm
So glad you liked it! I actually thought about adding golden raisins, but I’ve done a lot of raisin dishes recently. :)
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I made this yesterday and it’s already gone. YUM!
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Emily Malone Reply:
July 12th, 2012 at 7:10 pm
Yay!! We just made it again on Tuesday with purple cauliflower! :)
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Oh. My. GOD. I just made this and it’s sooooo good! I might end up eating the whole thing right now. I am not kidding! So much for leftovers…
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Emily Malone Reply:
July 18th, 2012 at 10:05 am
So glad you liked it!! :)
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[...] I made Daily Garnish’s Roasted Cauliflower Tahini Salad, Tamari-Roasted Chickpeas from Eat, Drink & Be Vegan and a side of kale sautéed in olive oil [...]
Hi Emily – just stopping by to say “I love this recipe!” – made it yesterday for dinner, had grand plans to spread this over several meals but I just finished the leftovers for lunch at work – I love recipes that taste good cold as well.
Oh, and your strawberry salad is now a weekly apeparance on our table:)
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Emily Malone Reply:
July 24th, 2012 at 3:18 pm
Yumm! Thanks for letting me know. :)
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Emily,
I am so happy I found your site, I love it & have told many of our friends/family in the L.A. area about it!
While we aren’t vegetarian in the true sense, we really eat very little meat. However, I have struggled to find ways to keep my family healthy leaning mostly towards vegetarian meals that are balanced, but they will eat and enjoy as well. I am an NICU RN, so I have a decent grip on nutrition and grew up with a triathlete father (who at 70, looks like your father-in-law!), so healthy living has always been part of my life, but I can and need to do better for myself and my family and your recipes have really been inspiring and extremely helpful to me!
You have a beautiful family and I love watching your adorable Cullen grow via your updates & photos! He looks like such a happy, healthy little man, his smile is to die for!
I do have a question about the cheesy kale chips that were part of the meal you made with the roasted cauliflower salad…did you make them yourself and if you did, would you please post the recipe?
Take care & I look forward to continuing to learn from you & your recipes!
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Made this again tonight. Just awesomely tasty.
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I am obsessed with this salad. I couldn’t stop sneaking more bites even after supper was over! Delicious–Thanks for posting.
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Emily Malone Reply:
September 4th, 2012 at 7:50 pm
I am too! :) We make it once a week now. So glad you like it!
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I love the PCC deli salads, I’ve recreated a few, too, like the Emerald City salad (kale, wild rice, etc.) and the Turkish Garbanzo Salad (with apricots). I was looking for inspiration this afternoon for something to do with the cauliflower in my vegetable drawer and cruised here via Recipage– nice work on Recipage, btw– and made this salad. I love roasted cauliflower, so I knew this salad would be a hit, and it was. I mixed it up with a few other veggies and some carrot ginger miso dressing I made the other day and served it over red oak leaf lettuce. Yum!
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Emily Malone Reply:
September 7th, 2012 at 7:00 am
It is one of our favorites as well. So glad you are enjoying Recipage!
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Delicious! Just made for a family BBQ this evening. Tahini and cauliflower are a great combination. True fall nuttiness. Thanks for sharing!
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Emily Malone Reply:
October 1st, 2012 at 4:09 pm
One of our favorites too! So glad you liked it.
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I’m so glad I’ve come across your blog. Added to the RSS feed!
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[...] Roasted cauliflower tahini salad. [...]
Just made this and like all your recipes, it was fabulous!
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[...] like: tamari, almond butter, raw almonds, salt/pepper, olive oil & fresh garlic.) I tested out Emily’s Tahini salad and have officially confirmed that it’s all about the [...]
[...] Roasted Cauliflower and Tahini Salad from Daily Garnish | This sounds like the weirdest salad ever, but once I had one serving of this sweet and bitter flavor combination, I was addicted. [...]
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