Baby Cauliflower and Spiced Chickpeas with Beetroot Tahini
What Could Be More Scrumptious Than Whole Roasted Baby Cauliflower? Combine Them with Spiced Chickpeas and Beetroot Tahini, and You’ll Have A Middle Eastern Inspired Salad That Won’t Disappoint.
Bring a large saucepan of water to boil. Immerse baby cauliflower into the boiling head first and boil for 8 minutes. Remove from the water and set aside to cool.
Once it has reached room temperature, baste with 1 tbsp olive oil and season with salt. Place on a sheet pan and put in the oven at 200 C or 400 F for 20 minutes or until golden brown. Remove and set aside to cool.
Drain the can of chickpeas and pat dry. In a small bowl mix 1 tbsp olive oil, ground cumin, cayenne pepper, paprika and salt together. Add the chickpeas and coat thoroughly.
Place the coated chickpeas onto a sheet pan and roast in the oven for 20 minutes at 200 C. Take out the sheet pan at the 10-minute mark and give it a shake so they roast evenly. After 20 minutes, remove and set aside to cool.
Roughly chop pistachio kernels.
Salad Dressing
Bring a small saucepan of water to boil. Remove the leaves and stem from the beetroot and place into the pot. Reduce to a simmer and place the lid on.Simmer for at least 30 minutes until they are tender. Remove from the pot, let it cool and with your fingers remove the skin, which should slide off easily.
With a hand blender, puree the beetroot, tahini, garlic cloves, lemon juice, a pinch of salt and pepper.
Assembly
Using a big flat platter, smear half the plate with the beetroot tahini.
Place the roasted baby cauliflower on the side with no tahini.
Place the spiced chickpeas next to the baby cauliflower. The idea is you want to be able to see the vibrant purple of the beetroot.
Sprinkle the salad with chopped pistachio kernels all around the plate, including the spaces that have nothing on it. Don’t put too much on the beetroot tahini so you can continue to make those colours come through.
With ½ tsp of olive oil, make small droplets on the outer rim of the plate.
Serve immediately as the chickpeas will start to get soft on the beetroot tahini.
Notes
If you can’t find baby cauliflower, just use normal cauliflower. Cut the florets into larger sizes should you wish to create a similar effect. You won’t be able to replicate the florets enveloped in leaves unfortunately but that’s ok!
The roasted chickpeas are spicy and it’s meant to give you a kick. Reduce the paprika and/or cayenne pepper to reduce the heat.
You can use the vacuum packed pre-cooked and pre-peeled beetroot. As you’re making it into a puree, they are just as good a product to use. Great if you’re short on time.
You can substitute pistachios with almond flakes, crushed macadamias or peanuts.