Cauliflower and Roasted Garbanzo Bean Salad
Ingredients
- 1 can garbanzo beans rinsed and dried
- 2 limes zested and juiced
- 2 tablespoons olive oil extra virgin
- 1/2 teaspoon chili powder
- salt and pepper to taste
- 1 head cauliflower
- 1 tablespoon dijon mustard
- 1 tablespoon maple syrup
- 5 radishes thinly sliced
- 1 apple thinly sliced
- 1 cup flat leaf parsley chopped
- 3 sprigs mint chopped
- 2 green onions thinly sliced
- 1/4 cup chilves chopped
- 1 avocado cubed
- 1/3 cup sunflower seeds
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Coat a baking sheet with foil and mix the garbanzo beans with lime zest, chili powder, salt, pepper, and a tablespoon of olive oil on the baking sheet. Roast for about 20 minutes until crisp and golden.
- Use a food processor to 'rice' the cauliflower; place a few handfuls of cauliflower flourets into the bowl of the food processor and pulse until they have formed small rice looking pieces. Pour into a large bowl and repeat for remainder of the cauliflower.
- In a small bowl, whisk the remaining lime zest, lime juice, salt, pepper, mustard, maple syrup, and 3-4 tablespoons of olive oil. Pour over the riced cauliflower and toss to coat.
- To the bowl of riced cauliflower, add the radishes, parsley, mint, scallions, chives, apple, and roasted chickpeas. Toss gently to combine. Top with the dived avocado, sunflower seeds, and salt and pepper to taste. Serve immediately keep in the fridge in an airtight container.
Notes
~Amanda~
Over the years, vegetables have been gaining more and more popularity for actually being tasty! I will admit I have jumped on several of these superfood vegetable bandwagons and one of my faves is the Cauliflower Rice trend and I have combined that into this delicious recipe. Not only does cauliflower actually taste good in here, but another reason to chow down on it is because it’s so healthy – it’s filled with sulforaphane (which helps fight cancer and boosts heart health), it’s rich in vitamins, minerals, and fiber, as well as antioxidants. Why wouldn’t you eat it?!
Growing up, we only ate cauliflower steamed as a side dish or as part of vegetable casserole, and I was never a huge fan of it. It always tasted very ‘blah’ to me. I was thrilled when I found a recipe for a super healthy and delicious cauliflower salad on The First Mess while searching for ideas for lunches to make ahead for the work week and I’ve put my own little spin on it. To get started, you need to prepare the cauliflower rice which is so so simple, you just use a food processor to pulse it and end up with something that looks like rice! I never would’ve thought of doing that a few years ago, but now it’s EVERYWHERE and a great hack for cutting out grains like rice.
The cauliflower rice is then combined with many different flavors and textures to create the most delicious salad. You get crisp and refreshing flavors from the radishes and apples, a nice warmth and crunch from roasted garbanzo beans, some zestiness (that’s a word right?) from the lime based dressing, and a light and fresh hit from the array of herbs from chives to green onion to mint. It sounds a little crazy, but your taste buds will be thanking you when they get hit with all this flavor and this salad will also satisfy all of your texture cravings – not to mention you’re getting the delicious cauliflower superfood hit for the day!
Like I said, this salad makes a great lunch on it’s own or I love to have it alongside our Sweet Potato Burgers for dinner. It keeps great in the fridge throughout the week (just wait to add the avocado when you’re ready to eat) and there are so many other uses for it; it makes a great snack or appetizer when served with crackers and hummus, you can serve it as a side dish to grilled chicken or fish, or even roll it up in lettuce or radicchio leaves. Whatever way you choose to eat it, I am sure you will love it. Enjoy!
