Gonna be honest here, this salad was a happy accident. But a bangin’ one that I now present to you.
Cauliflower is having a serious glow up right now. Like I remember being served steamed sad cauliflower as a kid at the dinner table or totally raw hunks to dip in processed ranch dressing at corporate parties and can’t remember one positive experience in between. Like, whoever the marketing team behind cauliflower is, really needs an award, because now I’m obsessed with the stuff.
It’s got vitamins, it’s got fiber, it’s got antioxidants, (I’m saying this like a car salesperson, I’ll have you know, in case my tone isn’t coming through across the internet), what can’t it do? It can’t stuff you with carbs, that’s what. It’s a perfect seemingly starchy replacement for things like mash potatoes or to thicken and add creaminess to soups and sauces, but it’s only 4% carbs, so you can eat like 97 heads of cauliflower and feel no guilt. Maybe a little weirdness, but no guilt.
This cauliflower rice salad whatever you call it is the perfect side dish to wow guests, perfect light weekday lunch idea, and somehow also the perfect main meal if you add a little extra protein.
In a food processor pulse a small head of cauliflower for 10 to 15 seconds, just enough to turn it into a cauliflower rice texture. Lay this out flat on a cooking sheet, spray with olive oil, dust with salt and pepper, and drizzle very finely with 1/2 teaspoon of plant-based apple honey (sub agave, date syrup, or coconut sugar), and heat for eight minutes at 450°. When it is done toasting, add a handful of cooked chickpeas, pistachios, and fresh oregano.
