Sesame-Turmeric Roasted Cauliflower Quinoa Salad with Creamy Tahini Dressing

Things have been pretty quiet around here on the blog as food shoots for the year have picked up. I wish I could say I was better at maintaining a blog schedule and a stylist freelance schedule after all of these years, but the truth is, you just never know when photo shoots are going to be busy and when they are going to be terrifyingly slow. But I wanted to check in, say hello, and let you know about a few things coming up.

First, I am making a commitment to share 2 new recipes a week. If I could post more recipes, I would, but I don’t want to over commit myself until I can get a rhythm going again. Just know, I have some great recipes coming up!

Second, I have been dedicating some time back into prepping the garden. This will be a new feature on the blog as I share with you my second year as a gardener. What I have learned, and all of the mistakes I have (and continue) to make. I hope it inspires you to challenge yourself to grow something this year, even if its just a few herbs in your window. And if anything, I hope that you get encouraged to eat more seasonally and support your local farmers.

Third, I have started the very long process of finishing my book proposal. This has been a project in the works for a very, very long time. And now I am finally, closely, almost, at the stages of being complete and ready to move onto the next steps. I so look forward to sharing with you the process along the way! It’s going to be a ride!

But let’s talk about this recipe, as that is probably why you are here. This recipe is flavorful, healthy, has all of the textures, and I love it so much. It might seem like a lot of steps and ingredients, but I promise, it’s worth it, and very simple.

The first thing is to make a batch of the sesame-turmeric spice blend. If you do not have all of the spices, don’t worry about, give it a try, play around with it. I like to make big batches of this blend and put it on everything, literally, everything. From roast vegetables to chicken, on top of ramen and the best, for homemade popcorn.

Ok, now the quinoa. What I like to do is keep cooked grains in my freezer, for moments like this, when I want a nutritious lunch, but only have so much time. So the next time you are making grains, or beans, or even a pasta sauce, if you have time and the extra ingredients, double your batch. Then allow it to cool, and divide out into freezer bags. Mark on the bag what it is, quantity, and the date. For this recipe I pulled out a freezer bag of quinoa that was marked with 2 cups.

You’ll see below that I gave you a few options for add-in’s. This could be some chopped dates or golden raisins for that sweet balance, or maybe some pistachios or cashews for some crunch. Maybe you want to add a little chili crunch for some heat, that would be perfect. Or you want to add avocados like I did? Great! I just prefer to add only the amount of avocados I am going to eat, that way I’m not storing the avocados with the salad in the fridge allowing it to get all brown and weird.

Alright, before we jump into the recipe, I wanted to talk about the creamy tahini dressing. There are so many great versions online. And often times I make a very simple one with: tahini, lemon juice, garlic, maple syrup, salt and water. Blend it all together, done and done. But it’s also fun to mix it up, add something different for your acid, maybe some new flavors like soy sauce, and a little sesame oil. I would love for you to try this version, but if you already have one made up in your fridge, or already have found the perfect dressing, use that, no judgement here!

Sesame-Turmeric Roasted Cauliflower Quinoa Salad with Creamy Tahini Dressing
Serves 4
2 cups of cooked quinoa
1 medium head of cauliflower
4 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, divided
1 can of chickpeas, rinsed and thoroughly drained 
Kosher salt 
1/2 cup parsley, roughly chopped, plus another handful for garnish 

Sesame-Turmeric Blend
1/2 cup nutritional yeast
2 tablespoons onion powder
1 tablespoon dried parsley
1 tablespoon toasted sesame seeds 
2 teaspoons ground turmeric
2 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon kosher salt 

Creamy Tahini Dressing
1/2 cup tahini
1/2 cup water, plus more if needed
2 tablespoons sesame oil
2 tablespoons soy sauce 
2 tablespoons rice vinegar or lime juice 
1 tablespoon maple syrup
1 clove garlic, minced

Optional Add-In’s:
Avocado, chopped
2-3 dates, roughly chopped
1/2 cup castelvetrano olives, pitted and torn
1/2 cup toasted pistachios, roughly chopped 

STEPS
First step, make your spice blend. Use this recipe as a starting point. You can add in some mustard powder, or other dried herbs, use less turmeric, or more. Simply put all of the ingredients together in a small jar with a lid, give it a shake and set aside. After this recipe, store for another use in your pantry.

Arrange two racks, one in the middle and one at the bottom of the oven and preheat to 450 degrees. Grab two rimmed baking sheets, one for the chickpeas and one for the cauliflower. 

Spread the drained chickpeas onto a clean kitchen towel, rub the chickpeas with the towel, really ensuring that they are dry, and removing some of the skins.

Place your towel dried chickpeas onto the first baking sheet, drizzle with 1 tablespoon of olive oil, and a small pinch of kosher salt. Toss together with your hands until evenly coated. Spread them out into a single layer, and roast until very crispy for about 35-40 minutes, shaking your pan about half way through. The chickpeas will take a bit longer to crisp up than the cauliflower, so it is important to get them in the oven before the cauliflower. 

Trim the cauliflower stem and greens away. Slice the cauliflower into large 1/2” slices, allowing some slices to stay whole, while others break into florets. Transfer the cauliflower to a rimmed baking sheet, drizzle with 3 tablespoons of olive oil, and 2 tablespoons of the sesame-turmeric spice blend and toss with your hands to evenly coat the florets. Spread out the cauliflower evenly. Roast for 15 minutes, toss, and roast again for another 15 minutes until they are deeply browned in spots. 

In the mean time, making your creamy tahini dressing by blending all of the ingredients together until smooth. Add more water if you are looking for a thinner consistency. Taste, and adjust seasonings. Set aside.

Remove the cauliflower and chickpeas from the oven. Add 1-2 teaspoons of the sesame-turmeric spice blend to the crispy chickpeas, toss together, and then allow to cool for 5 minutes as they will continue to crisp. 

Put the roasted cauliflower, crispy chickpeas, quinoa, parsley, olives and dates (if using) into a bowl and toss gently Drizzle on about half the dressing and toss again. 

Top with chopped avocado, more parsley, a sprinkle of sesame-turmeric seasoning, and additional dressing.